Cancun (Mexico), Nov 3 (EFE) The restoration work of the beaches washed away during Hurricane Wilma has begun in Mexico's Caribbean resort city of Cancun, officials said.

More than seven million cubic meters of sand will be required for the project in Cancun and Maya Riviera, but the current source in La Ollita has only 1.5 million cubic meters of sand, Felix Gonzalez Canto, governor of the Quintana Roo state, said Tuesday.

The decision to meet the shortfall will be taken in the coming days, he said, adding that the project will be completed by the yearend.

The sandbanks located close to the Cozumel island are being considered.

Meanwhile, the authorities are getting sand from the La Ollita area near Isla Mujeres for the project.

The first replacement of sand on the beaches was carried out in 2006 at a cost of more than $27 million. Hurricane Wilma battered the country in 2005.