SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — People left homeless by Hurricane Otis have begun showing up at the border with plans to seek asylum in the U.S.
Catalino Zavala Márquez, Baja California’s Secretary of State, said two adults and their three children arrived on Tuesday at the San Ysidro Port of Entry seeking asylum.
He said the family is from Acapulco, Mexico where Otis made landfall last week as a Category 5 hurricane.
Large portions of the city have been completely wiped out; Almost 50 people have been confirmed dead so far.
The newly arrived family was told to seek refuge at a Tijuana shelter, Zavala Márquez said.
“Anyone arriving at the border on the Mexican side will be offered assistance,” he said. “As of right now, only the one family of five has arrived and they were directed to a shelter where they could get their paperwork ready to enter the United States.”
Devastation in Acapulco due to Hurricane Otis. (Felix Marquez/AP)
In addition to migrants and refugees arriving in Tijuana from different parts of the world every day, Zavala Márquez said they are expecting more people from Acapulco in the coming weeks.
“We don’t have more information, but it’s very possible. We’re getting a shelter ready in case there is the need to accommodate larger numbers. We’re working with our counterparts in the state of Guerrero for some guidance.”
Damage along Acapulco’s coastline. (Rodrigo Oropeza/Getty Images)
He said they are creating space for up to 300 people at the Tijuana shelter should it become necessary.
According to Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, 250,000 families have been left homeless because of Hurricane Otis.
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