Hurricane Otis Slams Mexico
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Hurricane Otis made landfall on the coast of southern Mexico on Wednesday as a category five hurricane, battering towns and cities in its path with 165mph (270km/h) winds. At least 27 people were killed by Hurricane Otis, which caused widespread damage to buildings and power outages in Acapulco, a large port city and popular tourist destination, in the state of Guerrero. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) described Otis as a "life-threatening storm surge" which would bring large and dangerous waves, destructive winds and heavy rainfall. This could lead to flash flooding and mudslides, NOAA warned. "There are no hurricanes on record even close to this intensity for this part of Mexico," according to the National Hurricane Center. Forecasters said Otis "explosively intensified" by 110mph (177km/h) within 24 hours, rapidly morphing from a tropical storm into a category five hurricane.