The Mexican government has begun airlifting the first of thousands of stranded tourists out of the hurricane-ravaged resort area of Los Cabos.
The Interior Ministry says military and commercial planes are carrying travellers out through the Los Cabos international airport, which remains closed to commercial flights due to damage suffered when Hurricane Odile tore through the area late on Sunday and Monday.
Images on Mexican television showed the terminal full of debris, but Ministry official Jose Maria Tapia told Milenio Television earlier that the runway was usable and work was nearly complete to make the control tower operable.
Travellers were being flown free of charge to airports in Tijuana, Mazatlan, Guadalajara and Mexico City to catch connecting flights and, in the case of foreigners, receive consular assistance.
Thousands in the state of Baja California Sur remained without electricity, water or phone service on Tuesday.
A boat is on its way with humanitarian aid, and authorities are working to restore utilities.
Downgraded to a tropical storm, Odile continued to soak parts of the Baja California Peninsula, and forecasters said it was still capable of unleashing dangerous flash floods and mudslides.
In Los Cabos, Enrique Cota wept as he stood in murky, ankle-deep water and surveyed the destruction at his home. On the kitchen wall, a muddy mark nearly waist-high showed how deep the floodwaters got.
"We'll have to start over, little by little," Cota said, "because the stove, the refrigerator, the television, the kid's computer - it's all ruined."
Homes, stores and resorts along Los Cabos' famed hotel row all suffered severe damage, with room windows shattered, facades crumbled and lobbies full of debris.
Authorities said about 30,000 tourists, 26,000 of them foreigners, are being put up in temporary refuges or hotel areas converted to shelters.
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