Mexico will send troops to help the police combat looting in the resort town of Cancun which was ravaged by hurricane Wilma at the weekend, but the government will not declare a curfew, presidential spokesman Ruben Agilar said Tuesday.

In a visit to the area on Sunday, Mexican President Vicente Fox saw that federal and local police "were overwhelmed" by looters and gangsters who were throwing themselves on houses, shops, supermarkets and commercial centers, Agilar said.

He added that the government has issued a "respectful request" for residents of Cancun to stay in their homes after 7 p.m. local time (0100 GMT).

"We are not ignoring or hiding the thefts that have gone on, but the situation is now under control," Aguilar said.

Monday's television news had shown hundreds of people leaving half-wrecked shopping centers carrying water, canned drinks and packets of food.

Cancun has an 850-strong police force, who were reinforced on Monday by hundreds of federal police, soldiers and sailors.

According to the federal government the hurricane killed between four and eight people on the Yucatan Peninsula and nearby islands.

Aguilar said that given the strength of the storm the death count was comparatively low.

"We have confirmed four dead and we are verifying information about another four. But given the storm's power, we think this represents a low death toll and shows that protection measures worked," said Aguilar.

He estimated that one million people had been affected in the Yucatan.

He added that the government had put in place a plan to deliver clean water and energy. Wilma's passing at the weekend tore up 200 pylons and 10,000 electricity fixtures.

The severe damage means normal electricity might not be resumed until Friday.

The government estimated that every single hotel in Cancun and Cozumel had been damaged, but said that in a year 80 percent of installed capacity would have been returned to normal.

Source: Xinhua