By Diego DelgadoACAPULCO, Mexico (Reuters) - A 35-year-old sea turtle refuge in Acapulco is fighting for its life after the most powerful hurricane on record to strike Mexico's Pacific coast tore it apart last week. Campamento Tortuguero Playa Hermosa (Playa Hermosa Turtle Camp) has since the 1980s been working on Acapulco's beachfront to protect the marine reptiles, collecting their eggs so they can safely nest, hatch and return to the Pacific Ocean. Olive ridley turtles visit the camp in the rainy season, and Vallerino was preparing for the arrival of the brown leatherback turtle in cooler waters when Otis struck. Initially forecast just to become a tropical storm, Otis strengthened with a ferocity that stunned weather experts. "Sea turtles have been around since the time of the dinosaurs and are totally enigmatic animals," she said.

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Persons: Diego Delgado, Otis, Monica Vallerino, Michelle Montero, Vallerino's, Olive ridley, Vallerino, Sandra Maler Locations: Diego Delgado ACAPULCO, Mexico, Acapulco, Hermosa