Maria del Rosario Saravia has not given up hope. The 22-year-old woman and several other relatives have been staying in Acapulco Bay after Hurricane Otis swept across Mexico’s Pacific coast last week. – We will stay here until we have found our loved ones, says Saravia to the Reuters news agency. She looks out to sea and hopes for signs of life after the tragedy that has affected three generations of the family. Both the four-year-old son Luis Alberto Lopez, the mother and two brothers aged 9 and 31 are among the at least 50 missing. Close to 50 people have been confirmed dead. Otis was a category 5 hurricane, and it is the most powerful ever recorded in this area with winds of up to 270 kilometers per hour. The devastation in the tourist town of Acapulco is enormous. Roofs and entire facades of hotels and residential buildings have been torn off, the city is partially flooded and boats were washed up on the city’s iconic promenade. The storm also cut communication lines and road and air links to the city of 900,000 inhabitants. The facades and roofs of many luxury hotels and residential buildings have suffered extensive damage. Most of them are broken in the hotel’s reception area. Many boats were hit hard during Hurricane Otis. On fishing boats Maria del Rosario Saravia last had contact with the missing family members just before the hurricane hit land a little over a week ago. – That was the last time I saw them. I hope to see them again soon, says Saravia. Maria del Rosario Saravia is searching for her four-year-old son, mother and two brothers who have been missing since Hurricane Otis hit the tourist town of Acapulco on Mexico’s Pacific coast. Photo: Reuters The son, the mother and the youngest brother, nine-year-old Luis Sebastian, were with their father in a fishing boat that capsized in the storm. According to the father, they managed to stay together for a long time, says Saravia. – But the strong waves and wind carried them away, she says. No one has seen them since. The other brother, Aljeandro who was 31 years old and captain, was on board another boat. She says that the missing went out because they received orders from their bosses to look after the boats. – It’s terrible not knowing where they are, says Saravia, who is burdened with grief. She and several other relatives say that they have received no help whatsoever from the authorities in the country after the hurricane. The news agency Reuters has tried to get a comment from the authorities on the allegations without success. People in Acapulco have to collect water in plastic jugs after the ravages of Hurricane Otis. Photo: AFP Food queues The electricity and telephone networks have partially returned in Acapulco. But there is still a shortage of most things: food, water and cash. Desperate residents have begun looting shops and houses in the famous resort town in search of something to eat and drink, according to the Reuters news agency. People queue for hours outside shops that still sell food. Others stand with plastic jugs to fill water where possible. The kitchen in the four-star hotel Acamar, which has also suffered extensive damage, has become a soup kitchen for people who no longer have access to food and water. Destroyed building parts, broken glass and broken trees lie on the beaches and around the luxury hotels. Thousands of police officers and soldiers have been deployed to help restore order in the city and stop the looting of, among other things, shops and residential buildings. A soldier cleaned up Friday after the ravages of the storm in Acapulco. Photo: AFP Aid package The Mexican government came up with an aid package of around NOK 30 billion on Wednesday. The money will, among other things, provide food aid to 250,000 families for three months and rebuild the tourist town of Acapulco. – We will soon get back the beautiful and nostalgic port of Acapulco, said President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The aid package will also help to restore the hotels and the road network to and from the city, which is very important for the country’s tourism income. Acapulco has been a popular tourist destination for many decades and is not least associated with Hollywood stars and American millionaires who traveled there in the 1950s and 1960s. But in recent years, few foreign tourists have visited the city due to a sharp increase in violence linked to the powerful drug cartels. Israel’s prime minister says the ground invasion of Gaza will happen soon. American media claim that Israel has postponed the invasion following pressure from the United States.
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