Hurricane Otis – latest: Fears grow for people still missing in Acapulco after storm killed 27

On the same day Hurricane Otis slammed into Acapulco with 165mph winds, killing 27 and causing widespread damage throughout the Mexican city, House Republicans in the US elected Congressman Mike Johnson to serve as the new Speaker of the House.

The hurricane underwent rapid intensification, transforming from a Category 1 storm to a Category 5 storm in just under 12 hours, catching researchers completely off-guard.

The ongoing climate crisis is driving global water temperatures to record highs, and those temperatures help to fuel the rapid intensification of hurricanes into monsters like Otis.

In 2019, when Mr Johnson was chairing the Republican Study Committee, the group collectively sneered at the Green New Deal, a proposal intended to help take rigorous steps to combat the climate crisis.

The group mocked the proposal, calling it the “Greedy New Steal.”

Because Hurricane Otis’s eyewall — the most powerful part of the storm — was directly over Acapulco when it made landfall on Wednesday, it may have set a record for the most number of people to experience a Category 5 storm at one time, according to former NOAA hurricane scientist Jeff Masters.

The population of Acapulco is just over a million people.

Acapulco cut off by Cat-5 Hurricane Otis which caught forecasters by surprise

A “nightmare scenario” struck shortly after midnight in the coastal city of Acapulco on Wednesday.

Hurricane Otis roared ashore in southern Mexico, the strongest-ever storm to make landfall on the country’s west coast.

The hurricane underwent explosive intensification from a Category 1 to Category 5 in just 12 hours in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, catching forecasters by surprise. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) described it as a “nightmare scenario” for the region.

Louise Boyle reports:

Heavy rain from Otis will continue to impact areas of southwest Mexico across Guerrero and Oaxaca states, and may also cause “life-threatening coastal flooding” through Thursday, NHC said.

Martha McHardy reports:

At least four people are missing after Hurricane Otis ripped through Acapulco, Mexican officials said on Thursday.

Secretary of State for Security Rosa Icela Rodriguez said at least 27 people have died, while four are missing after 165mph winds ripped through Acapulco yesterday.

Not a single powerline was left standing in the Mexican city of Acapulco after Hurricane Otis ripped through the city, Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador said.

Millions of people in Acapulco were left without power after 165mph winds hammered the city yesterday.

President López Obrador added that small farmers had their corn crops devastated by Otis.

He said restoring power to the city is the top priority.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador travelled to Acapulco on Thursday, where at least 27 people died in a category 5 hurricane.

Mr López Obrador’s car became stuck in the mud as he tried to get over the highway.

He had to get out of the car to walk after debris from a mudslide blocked the way.

“The army is bringing machinery and we’re going to try to reopen [the highway] as soon as possible,” he said.

It came after Acapulco residents expressed their dissatisfaction at the speed of rescue efforts.

Residents have also described looting taking place at local shops after families lost their homes and important documents in the hurricane.

“When is the government ever going to look after the common people?” one resident said.

Powerful winds and heavy rainfall have ravaged the city after Hurricane Otis made landfall in Acapulco just after midnight in the city, causing flooding and landslides.

Tens of thousands were also left without power after the hurricane destroyed all the city’s powerlines.