Category 5 Hurricane Otis roars into Mexico, causing widespread destruction

Hurricane Otis hit the beach resort of Mexico's Acapulco early on Wednesday. The storm, which happens to be one of the strongest storms ever to hit Mexico's Pacific Coast, smashed buildings and vital infrastructure, leaving the city disconnected and without power. Itclaimed the lives of at least 27 people.

The destruction wrought massive destruction

In the southern state of Guerrero the category 5 storm, Otis, as per videos and photos on social media, wrought widespread destruction, wrecking hotels, ripping open walls and ceilings, shattering windows, and leaving cars partly submerged in floodwaters.

Videos from Acapulco show debris strewn around lobbies, patios, streets and hotel balconies, and remnants of mangled trees littering the city's downtown area.

Furthermore, downed telecommunication linesand damage to infrastructure left the city's residents disconnected from the outside world.

The power loss also led to the closure of the city's airport. Furthermore, as per the government, the airport suffered significant damage — with storm Otis smashing the control tower's windows.

While there were no immediate reports of fatalities, as per a Reuters report, this could be becausepower outages have made it hard for officials to assess the extent of the destruction.

Watch |Hurricane Otis slams Mexican coast as a category 5 storm

Some officials have reportedly expressed concern that there would likely have been some loss of life.

President lends support

As per Reuters, Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador tried to reach Acapulco by car to lend his support. However, he was held up due to road closures caused by the storm.

Otis roared into the coast with winds of 165 miles per hour (266 kph), reaching the shore as a Category 5 storm - the strongest level on the five-step Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale. However, it quickly weakened to a Category 4 storm.

It further lost its power as it moved inland, reducing to a tropical storm and finally dissipating over southern Mexico mountains. As per Reuters, themain highway connecting Acapulco to Mexico City will not be fully open until Thursday. The nation has mobilised the militaryto help clear up the mess left behind by Otis.

(With inputs from agencies)