Hurricane Otis quickly rose to a Category five storm early Wednesday morning as it rampaged through Mexico鈥檚 southern Pacific coast, prompting alerts for Acapulco locals and tourists in the region to take cover.
Otis reached maximum sustained winds of 230 kilometres per hour on Tuesday evening, but by mid-morning Wednesday it weakened to a Category 2 storm with winds decreasing from 130 km/h to 17 km/h.
Despite the storm weakening, significant property damage was left behind as walls were ripped off of buildings, hotel rooms were flooded and downed trees blocked roads in the city. Heavy rainfall is expected to continue as the storm moves inland and local officials are warning people to stay home as Acapulco鈥檚 mayor says the city is under 鈥渕aximum alert.鈥�
Acapulco鈥檚 population of nearly one million people includes several neighbourhoods planted on the hillsides featuring luxury homes and hotels alike. As the storm鈥檚 destruction continues to impact people in the area, CTVNews.ca wants to hear from Canadians in the region.
Are you currently visiting Acapulco? Are you trapped in your hotel room amid the storm? Have local authorities and hotel staff provided updates on when it鈥檒l be safe to go outside? What are the storm conditions right now and how have they impacted you?
Share your comments by emailing us at dotcom@bellmedia.ca with your name, general location and phone number in case we want to follow up. Your comments may be used in a CTVNews.ca story.
With files from The Associated Press
