A week after floods devastated large swaths of five states in central and eastern Mexico, the federal government acknowledged that the death toll has reached 72, while 48 others have been officially declared missing.
Mudslides and damaged bridges have left several regions isolated, particularly in the state of Hidalgo northeast of Mexico City and in the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz. Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation Minister Jesús Esteva said 127 towns remain virtually inaccessible as of Thursday night.
Esteva said his ministry is documenting and mapping the damage to facilitate rescue and recovery operations, while more than 8,000 soldiers are working in the affected areas to search for the missing and remove debris.
The Defense Ministry has been operating around the clock, tasking 21 helicopters with deliveries and medical supplies, especially to isolated regions of Hidalgo and Veracruz.
Esteva said the government is working with some urgency as the weekend weather forecast indicates a cold front will be moving in, bringing with it heavy rain, though the storms are projected to be south of the areas affected by last week’s flooding.
Veracruz, the state hardest hit by the flooding, has reported 32 fatalities with 14 residents counted as missing, followed by Hidalgo (21 dead) and Puebla (18).
Veracruz Governor Rocío Nahle is facing growing criticism for her handling of the disaster. On Thursday, she insisted that the state Civil Protection agency did issue an early alarm and thousands were evacuated, “although some residents preferred to remain in their homes.”
Some residents insist no such alarm sounded.
While on Friday Nahle said her administration would work to make sure all families affected by the disaster are safe and secure, one columnist pointed out that the governor canceled the state’s natural disaster insurance policy.
Near Poza Rica, Veracruz, where thousands are without shelter and fetid water remains ankle deep, residents in the area are voicing concern about the potential spread of typhoid fever and cholera.
In Puebla, government officials are working to find accommodations for more than 200 people who lost everything in the flooding. Although nearly 2,000 people have left state-run shelters in hopes of salvaging their homes and property, dozens of families face an uncertain future.
The newspaper Milenio reported that the state is preparing to close down the shelters, but more than 200 people who lost everything — primarily campesinos — say they have nowhere to go.
“We are just simple farmers. We have no wages, no other means of support except whatever help the government might provide,” said Jesús Hernández, a resident of Colonia Los Manguitos who was in a shelter in the municipality of Xicotepec with his wife and several grandchildren.
North of the impacted areas in the state of Tamaulipas, residents of Tampico and Ciudad Madero along the Gulf Coast are taking precautions as the Pánuco River has reached critical levels.
The National Water Commission (Conagua) has sought to assuage concerns, reporting late Thursday that flood stage would not be reached for another 80 hours, and only if conditions worsen. For now, Conagua said, the forecast is not cause for alarm.
Even so, the state Water Resources Ministry has ordered Civil Protection agents to take preventive measures in low-lying areas of the adjacent municipalities.
With reports from El Universal, La Jornada, Proceso and Milenio
