President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador arrived in the seaside city late today, after his convoy found roads blocked by landslides and other debris, forcing the president and others to abandon their vehicles and walk the final miles.
“The army are bringing machinery and we’re going to try to reopen (the highway) as soon as possible,” he told journalists who were also trying to reach Acapulco.
He had said earlier that there were no initial reports of deaths but “there’s material damage and blocked roads”.
The closures forced some to slog for hours through mud and debris in an attempt to find food and shelter.
“Acapulco is a total disaster. It is not what it was before. The park was totally destroyed, the buildings, all the streets,” said 24-year-old resident Eric Hernandez, who made the decision to leave on foot.
“The shops had all been looted, people were fighting for things. So we decided to walk as there wasn’t anything left there,” he said.
Others said an overflowing river and collapsed bridges had cut off communities near Acapulco.
“A lot of people got stuck on the other side of the river in our village, which was overflowing a lot. People were left homeless, there’s no electricity,” said Israel Perez, a 21-year-old baker.
A convoy carrying humanitarian aid set off to try to reach Acapulco – home to about 780,000 people – by land since the airport was closed, authorities said.
“The urgent thing is to attend to the affected population. We still don’t have the damage assessment because there’s no communication,” civil protection national coordinator Laura Velazquez said.
Otis was packing maximum sustained winds of 265kph when it hit the coast, but later dissipated over southern Mexico, the US National Hurricane Center said.
The storm had rapidly strengthened to the most powerful category of the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale as it neared land, taking authorities by surprise.
“Rarely, according to records, does a hurricane develop so quickly and with such force,” Lopez Obrador said.
People recounted a terrifying ordeal as Otis made landfall overnight on the usually sun-kissed resort town.
“The building shook as if there was an earthquake,” Citlali Portillo, a tourist accommodation manager, told the television channel Televisa, adding that she had taken shelter in a bathtub.