It’s been six days since Hurricane Otis hit Acapulco, Mexico, with the brutality of a Category 5 storm.
Mexico officials said in a release Monday that at least 45 people are dead and 47 are still missing. Among the dead were three foreign residents: one from the United States, one from Canada and one from England.
All remaining tourists were evacuated on Sunday and six flights were promised by Mexico’s president as soon as electricity was restored to the airport, which was expected Monday night or Tuesday, per the release.
Damage done by the storm is estimated to be about $15 billion, according to Reuters. Nearly 17,000 members of the armed forces have been dispatched to distribute food, water and other supplies to the city’s 900,000 residents.
Reuters reported that the situation is desperate as residents are scared of being assaulted and robbed of necessities.
“Look how many of us there are,” Emilia Rojas told Reuters while waiting in line for water. “We’re so many. This water isn’t going to be enough.”
Electricity was restored to about two-thirds of the city as of Tuesday morning, reported BBC.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said the goal, after distributing necessities, is to get Acapulco businesses “on their feet” again to restore economic activity, per a Monday statement.
“We are going to attend to the entire affected population and we are going to do it as soon as possible, we are already doing it quickly and we are going to continue moving forward,” said López Obrador in a statement.