Mexico's southern coast braced for Hurricane Otis on Wednesday as the Category 5 storm made landfall near the beach resorts of Acapulco, with the potential to cause "catastrophic damage," the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
The hurricane reached land near Acapulco, bringing maximum sustained winds around 270 kmh and heavy rain, the center said.
The storm could bring up to 51 cm of rain in parts of Guerrero and Oaxaca, with the possibility of flash floods and mudslides, a "potentially catastrophic" storm surge, and "life-threatening" surf and rip current conditions, authorities said.
Mexico's national water agency CONAGUA warned of six-to-eight-meter surf off Guerrero state, home to Acapulco, and also off parts of Oaxaca state.
By 9 pm on Tuesday (0300 GMT), Otis was about 55 miles south-southeast of Acapulco and blowing maximum sustained winds of 257 kph, the Miami-based NHC added.
In Guerrero, authorities were preparing storm shelters and the national guard said it was helping to prepare for rescues and evacuations.
The defence ministry enacted a disaster plan ahead of the storm's arrival, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on social media late on Tuesday, as soldiers patrolled Acapulco's emptying beaches.
Schools across Guerrero canceled classes for Wednesday ahead of Otis' arrival, Governor Evelyn Salgado said on social media.
US peace envoys meet Zelenskyy in Kyiv after Putin talks
US targets three Iranian oil vessels after attack on Navy ships
Israeli strikes kill seven in southern Lebanon
Indonesia's Anak Krakatau eruption halts flights, schools, fishing
Putin says US-Russia contacts beneficial as talks begin with Witkoff and Kushner
Chinese national rescued from Nepal tunnel 10 days after flash flood
US envoys Witkoff, Kushner arrive in Moscow for talks on peace in Ukraine
One dead, 11 people missing after mudslide in China's Jiangxi province
