At Villa Fantasía, meet Pancho the croc and the Ocelot without a name

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September 25, 2020

A woman braves the heat in Mexicali in August, when the city recorded a temperature of 50.2 C.

August 2020 was the second warmest August in Mexico since 1953, with an average temperature of 26.6 C, 2.9 degrees above average.

The National Meteorological Service reports that August 2019 was the warmest with an average temperature of 27, but two high-temperature records were broken this year. The first was on August 14 when Mexicali, Baja California, reached 50.2 C. The second record was broken on August 18 in Sahuaripa, Sonora, with a high of 48 C.

“The high temperatures that were recorded during the month of August were generated by a high-pressure system in the middle and upper levels of the atmosphere, over 3,000 meters high, which was positioned over northern Mexico since the month of July, and later in August it moved to the northwest of the country,” the National Water Commission said.

For the rest of the hurricane season, which ends in both the Atlantic and Pacific on November 30, more storms are expected to form. However, rainfall in northern and central Mexico is expected to remain below average, whereas on the Pacific coast, in the Gulf of Mexico and on the Yucatán Peninsula above-average rainfall is expected due to the La Niña phenomenon.

La Niña is present when the Pacific Ocean’s temperature is cooler than average, and it can mean less chance of storm formation in the Pacific. It has the opposite effect on the Atlantic Ocean, where between 19 and 25 named storms are forecast this season due to the phenomenon. Twenty storms have been named thus far in the Atlantic, and 12 in the Pacific.

Source: Forbes (sp)

Spending a day at the park has new meaning for Mexico City family

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September 25, 2020

Jair helps his children with their studies at a park in Venustiano Carranza.

A day in the park might sound like fun but for some children in Mexico City it’s all about hard work.

The Fortino Serrano Park is one of 80 places in the borough of Venustiano Carranza where authorities are lending tablet computers to students so they can complete their schoolwork, which has largely shifted online due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Jair, an architect, takes his three primary school-aged children to the park every weekday so they can keep up to date with their classes.

In addition to borrowing tablets and connecting to the park’s wireless internet, students can also print documents free of charge.

Jair (whose last name was not given) told the newspaper El Universal that he gets up early every morning to start his own work – he’s not currently going to his office due to the pandemic – before preparing breakfast for his children.

Pasa hasta siete horas en parque con internet para hacer la tarea

Watch this video on YouTube

The kids then watch televised classes until 10:00 a.m. after which they set off for the park with their dad.

“We’ve been coming daily for the internet and to print,” Jair said.

“We only have one computer at home and sometimes the video calls [from teachers] come at the same time. … Printing and scanning is also expensive,” he said.

“It’s not easy, I have to divide up my work. I work in the morning, I come with them [to the park] and I keep working afterwards. Sometimes I also have to work here,” Jair added.

He spends a lot of his time, however, helping his third grade twins – a boy and a girl – and his fifth grade son understand their schoolwork and checking it when they’ve finished.

At 2:00 p.m. they take a break while cleaning staff sanitize the area where the students work but by 4:00 p.m. the kids are back at it, finishing off their class work and doing any homework they might have.

Manuel Vargas Cardoni, director of culture, recreation and sport with the Venustiano Carranza council, said that any students who live in the municipality can borrow a tablet and print out the school documents they need.

“We have 50,000 families with economic deficiencies in the municipality and they can’t take their children to internet cafes. That’s why we provide [free internet] service at 80 places including 16 libraries and five parks,” he said.

Vargas explained that access to the park during the week is limited to students doing school work.

“It’s not a good idea to have children running and playing while others are concentrating,” he said.

Hundreds of thousands if not millions of students across Mexico don’t have access to a computer and/or the internet at home, and some don’t have televisions or can’t pick up the signal to watch televised classes.

As is often the case in Mexico, some innovative solutions to the problems have been found.

A tortilla maker in Mexico City converted the bed of a pickup truck into a virtual classroom for disadvantaged children while a devoted teacher in Michoacán decided to travel to the homes of each of her students and teach them in person.

Source: El Universal (sp)

Area of zero tolerance enlarged to protect endangered vaquita

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September 25, 2020

The vaquita marina, of which an estimated 10 remain.

The federal government has enlarged by 50% an area of what it calls zero tolerance in the upper Gulf of California to protect the critically endangered vaquita marina porpoise.

The Agriculture Ministry, the Environment Ministry and the navy published a decree in the government’s official gazette Thursday that declares that all gillnets are permanently prohibited in the zero tolerance zone, which is 75 square kilometers larger than the one previously in place.

A permanent ban on gillnets has been in place since 2017 but conservationists have accused the government of failing to enforce it, allowing illegal fishing to continue.

Some other nets including shrimp push nets can still be used in the area, according to the decree, and line fishing and diving for fishing purposes are permitted.

Gillnet fishing for totoaba, a species of fish prized in China for its swim bladder, has decimated the vaquita marina population to such an extent that it is now thought that there are fewer than 10 in the upper Gulf of California, the only place in the world they live. The mammals are prone to becoming entangled in the nets and drowning.

To ensure compliance with the fishing rules in the zero tolerance area, authorities will carry out sea and air patrols around the clock, according to the document published Thursday.

The government departments said that anyone planning to fish in the zero tolerance area using small boats must inform the nearest office of the National Aquaculture and Fisheries Commission (Conapesca) prior to launching.

They also said that fishermen must inform Conapesca if they have any interaction with marine mammals including vaquitas while on the water.

“All small boats … will be inspected without exception at the time of departure and at disembarkation,” the decree said.

Navy personnel, members of the National Guard, and officials with Conapesca and the environmental protection agency Profepa will be responsible for carrying out the inspections, the document said.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessels have also patrolled the upper Gulf of California to ensure compliance with fishing rules. One of them, the M/V Sharpie, came under gunfire in February as it was being chased by four fishing skiffs known as pangas.

Source: Milenio (sp)

Mexico City takes delivery of first of 10 fully electric buses

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September 25, 2020

One of the capital's new Chinese-made buses.

Mexico City’s first 100% electric bus debuted Thursday on Line 3 of the Metrobús, which runs from Tenayuca to Ethiopia. Nine additional units will arrive by the end of this year, at a cost of about US $750,000 each.

“It is the first fully electric bus to operate in Mexico City in Metrobús, and our objective is to continue advancing in electromobility with buses and trolley buses that operate with electricity to replace diesel,” Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said at the bus’s unveiling.

“This helps us in two very important areas: the reduction of polluting emissions and greenhouse gases, which causes climate change, and even though the investment is a little higher, in the long run, it is much cheaper,” Sheinbaum said.

Metrobús director Roberto Capuano announced that the operating cost is 30% less than that of a diesel-fueled bus.

The new bus also promises a better experience for passengers and drivers, offering a smooth ride, free of vibrations, Capuano said. It also has spaces for wheelchairs and guide dogs, overhead monitors and USB ports for charging electronic devices.

The bus's interior has space for wheelchairs and guide dogs and comes with USB charging ports. — The bus’s interior has space for wheelchairs and guide dogs and comes with USB charging ports.

Retractable doors mean passengers won’t be hit by the door as they embark or disembark, and the buses will be equipped with a camera system for security.

They can travel 330 kilometers on a single charge and will recharge at night in just 3.5 hours.

Capuano said it is the first unit of its kind to go into commercial operation in Mexico.

Compared to a diesel bus, Capuano says “the new electric unit reduces energy use by 80% and in 10 years of operation avoids the emission of 1,300 tonnes of carbon, he noted. “Likewise, it contributes to improving air quality by eliminating, in the same period, 14 tonnes of pollutants, including particulate material, harmful to the respiratory system, and nitrogen oxides, associated with ozone contingencies.”

The vehicles, which were manufactured by the Chinese company Yutong, which also made the city’s electric trolley buses, are 18 meters long and can carry 40 seated passengers and 120 standing.

Source: El Universal (sp)

3-meter-long crocodile spotted on Acapulco beach

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September 25, 2020

Crocodile in the surf on Thursday afternoon.

A crocodile measuring more than three meters long was spotted at the Pie de la Cuesta beach in Acapulco Thursday, putting tourists and residents on high alert.

According to reports, the crocodile came out of the water at around 4 p.m. on Thursday, pausing for a few minutes on the beach while people snapped photos before retreating back into the surf.

Civil Protection personnel and firefighters were summoned to the area to search for the crocodile but were unable to locate it, and they suggested that residents and tourists in the area be extremely cautious.

The beach where the croc was spotted is close to Coyuca Lagoon where fresh and saltwater meet and currents may have pulled the reptile out of its natural habitat and into the sea, which often happens when the sandbar gives way.

This is the second crocodile sighted in the area this month. A crocodile that attacked and ate a stray dog was captured on September 7.

That was the 10th crocodile spotted in the municipality in recent months.

So far no one has been injured by crocodiles on the beaches of Acapulco, but in July a six-year-old boy was attacked by a crocodile in Ixtapa when he and his sister were playing near El Palmar beach and wandered away from their parents.

As the boy played near a fenced-off area under a bridge, a female crocodile with young grabbed him by the head, dragged him into the water and tried to drown him for approximately 10 minutes, biting him in the head, arms, chest and legs.

He was taken to the hospital with severe injuries.

Source: ADN 40 (sp)

The world’s most obese man shed nearly 400 kilos, went on to beat Covid-19

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September 25, 2020

Franco weighed 595 kilos in 2016, breaking a Guinness record.

The man who was the most obese person in the world before losing nearly 400 kilos through weight loss surgery has successfully fought another battle for his health.

Juan Pedro Franco of Aguascalientes has now survived the coronavirus as well, according to a report by Agence France-Presse.

Back in 2016, the 32-year-old weighed 595 kilos, the size of an average male polar bear, certifying him as the world’s fattest man by Guinness World Records.

But that was before he traveled to Guadalajara, Jalisco, and met Dr. José Antonio Castañeda, who put him on a Mediterranean diet that emphasizes vegetables and fruits and then performed two operations. After gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, and gastric band surgeries, Franco lost nearly 400 kilos and now weighs in at 208.

And although he suffers from comorbidities including diabetes, hypertension and chronic pulmonary disease due to his weight, he managed to shake off the coronavirus after testing positive a month ago.

“It is complicated because it is a very aggressive disease. I had a headache, body aches, my air was gone, a fever. I was a very at-risk person,” Franco said of his bout with the disease.

Franco considered that the complex treatment he underwent to lose weight helped him defeat Covid-19 because his diabetes and hypertension are now under control.

But Franco’s mother and caregiver, María de Jesús Salas, was not so lucky. The 66-year-old, who also had diabetes and hypertension, died of the disease after being intubated.

“Just because you are a thin person without comorbidities, you are not exempt from complications. All bodies behave differently when faced with the disease,” Franco said.

Mexico has one of the highest rates in the world for obesity in both children and adults, which has been an obstacle in the fight against Covid-19. One in four of the 75,439 coronavirus deaths in Mexico occurred among people who were overweight, and a fifth of the 715,457 who have been infected are obese.

Source: Uno TV (sp), La Nación (sp)

Chihuahua has paid its share of water debt, governor says as protests continue

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September 25, 2020

Corral, left, and López Obrador: the relationship has soured since this photo was taken.

Contrary to President López Obrador’s claims, Chihuahua is complying with its obligation to send water to the United States to meet Mexico’s water debt under the terms of a 1944 bilateral treaty, according to Governor Javier Corral.

The governor said in an interview that Chihuahua has met its past obligations and will deliver more water to the United States by October 24, the deadline for Mexico to settle its current debt to its northern neighbor.

Corral said that by then Chihuahua will have delivered 905 million cubic meters of water to the United States during the treaty’s current five-year cycle.

His remarks came after Texas Governor Greg Abbott wrote to United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to urge him to ensure Mexico meets its obligations under the 1944 treaty.

Mexico has to send just over 431 million cubic meters of water annually to the United States but as of last week was 319 million cubic meters short of that target.

President López Obrador has been pressuring Corral to ensure that water is sent from Chihuahua, where farmers have been protesting its diversion from the Boquilla dam to the Rio Grande.

“Instead of helping to comply with this agreement, the governor opposed it,” López Obrador said Thursday, asserting that Corral’s actions are politically motivated as elections will be held in Chihuahua in 2021.

The governor countered that National Water Commission (Conagua) officials are to blame for the failure to keep up with Mexico’s water obligations to the United States. He accused the president of wanting to subjugate and humiliate him and other state governors.

“The president asks blind obedience of his collaborators,” Corral said, referring to remarks made by a government official who resigned this week, “and wants governors to be submissive and silent.”

“He never accepts responsibility and always looks for a culprit elsewhere,” he added.

However, Corral asserted that López Obrador won’t find a willing scapegoat in the government he leads.

One of eight railway blockades in Chihuahua.

“With us, he’ll hit a wall,” he said, adding that the president’s attempts at intimidation might work with other governors but not with him.

“He won’t intimidate me, he won’t keep me quiet. We’re going to respond with respect but also firmness,” Corral said.

The governor asserted that from López Obrador’s point of view,“everyone that is not with him, is against him – a traitor, a hypocrite, corrupt.”

“The country cannot be run with this temperament; the president needs to pause and think about what he’s doing and bring himself back to reality,” he said.

Corral, member of a group of 10 state governors who announced their withdrawal from the National Conference of Governors earlier this month after deeming that López Obrador was a threat to democracy, said López Obrador has no evidence for his claim that the Chihuahua government is involved in the water protests. Those have included the occupation of the Boquilla dam and toll plazas as well as a blockade of railway tracks.

Piles of earth and gravel have been dumped on the tracks in eight locations in the municipality of Meoqui in the month-long blockade, halting cross-border shipments of freight. The leader of one business group said 1.5 million tonnes of corn and wheat are among the trade goods awaiting shipment.

Source: El Universal (sp), Luces del Siglo (sp)

Indigenous activist who denounced lack of water murdered in Baja California

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September 25, 2020

Óscar Eyraud Adams was shot to death in Tecate.

An indigenous water rights activist was murdered Thursday night in Tecate, Baja California.

Witnesses say two vehicles with tinted windshields arrived at the house where Óscar Eyraud Adams lived and shot him at around 7 p.m.

A member of the Kumeyaay indigenous group, Eyraud had been an activist for years, speaking out about issues of ethnicity and environmental injustice, a family member said.

Last month, Eyraud publicly denounced the lack of water in his community and warned of cultural consequences to come.

In an interview with the newspaper Reforma in August, conducted in a dried-up field, Eyraud complained that water that should go to indigenous communities to irrigate their crops was being diverted to transnational companies, such as Heineken.

“All this disappeared due to lack of water,” he told the newspaper as the camera panned the desiccated plot of land where he said fruit trees used to grow.

“These [water] rights should be for the indigenous community first rather than businesses and people who have the purchasing power just to have them … That puts the culture of this community at risk,” he added.

In what would prove to be his last social media post on Thursday afternoon, Eyraud called for the struggle to continue.

“Express your concern for water and disappearances, for indigenous communities,” he wrote.

Activists from Baja California shared the news of Eyraud’s death over social media and highlighted his struggle in favor of indigenous peoples.

“Óscar was willing to fight in search of self-determination for the Kumeyaay community, and the use of water concessions that Conagua had denied them,” she continued. “He was assassinated by the narco-state in Tecate, Baja California. The fight for the defense of water and the territory has taken comrades from us because they want to silence us by sowing terror,” activist Diana Tlazohcamati wrote on her Facebook account.

At least four other activists have been killed in Mexico this year, and the country is one of the most dangerous in the world for those who publicly condemn environmental injustice, according to Amnesty International. Fifteen activists were killed in Mexico in 2019.

Source: Sin Embargo (sp)

Suspected gangster linked to missing Ayotzinapa students to stand trial on drug charges

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September 25, 2020