Mexico storms: floods strand 40,000 tourists in Acapulco
Liam Dutton
Weather Presenter
Two tropical storms that hit Mexico in the space of 24 hours at the weekend have left a trail of flooding and mudslides across the country, leaving 47 people dead.
In the west coast resort of Acapulco, 40,000 tourists are reported to be stranded, as the city remains cut off following 13 landslides that have blocked the main highway leaving the area.
Tropical Storm Manuel pounded the western side of Mexico last weekend, with torrential rain and strong winds that have hit the region hard.
Terminals at Acapulco’s main airport were flooded, with water waist-deep, meaning that the airport had to be closed for a time.
Whilst the terminals remain closed, runways are free of flood water, with two flights an hour able to depart from the airport – but nowhere near enough to clear the backlog of people stranded.
People were also being taken to a military air base just north of Acapulco, where a military air bridge of a dozen aircraft ferried tourists to Mexico City.
Families in shorts and sandals queued for as long as eight hours outside the gates of the base, where they waited anxiously for a chance at one of the 150 seats on the next departing Air Force Boeing 727.
Lizbeth Sasia, a 25-year-old teacher from Cuernavaca, said: “It’s horrible. We haven’t eaten anything since nine in the morning. They keep telling us we’ll be on the next flight, but the next flight never comes.”
Officials said it has been more than 50 years since Mexico was hit by two tropical storm-strength weather systems within 24 hours – the other being Tropical Storm Ingrid that slammed into the eastern side of the country on Monday.
In Mexico City, the Mexican Red Cross were working hard in a purpose-built aid centre gathering supplies to send to Acapulco, Guerrero and other regions severely affected by the storms.
Food, water and other aid flooded into the centre on Tuesday, with people arriving with their cars full of supplies for people affected by the storms.
Federal officials said it could take at least another two days to open the main highway to Acapulco and to bring food and relief supplies into the city of more than 800,000 people.
Whilst there are no tropical storms at the moment, the National Hurricane Center is closely monitoring a potential storm in the Gulf of Mexico. Expected to develop in the next 24 hours, it brings the threat of more torrential rain and flooding to places still under water.