President Claudia Sheinbaum said that her Government has preliminarily estimated that some one hundred thousand homes have been affected by rains and floods in five states in the center of the country since last October 6, leaving, so far, 64 people dead and 65 more missing.
The president also said that there is a “budgetary allocation for emergencies” of 19,000 million pesos (about 1,024 million dollars), of which three billion pesos (about 162 million dollars) have already been allocated for damage in the states of Guerrero and Oaxaca due to the passage of Hurricane Eric.
“We will give the data once there is a first census (of those affected). Yesterday we made an estimate that there could be one hundred thousand homes affected in the five states of the country (Veracruz, Puebla, Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí and Querétaro) (…) it is a totally preliminary figure, until the census is finished, we could not give a final figure,” Sheinbaum explained.
The head of state added that the estimate was made according to the number of homes registered in each affected municipality and said that “in all cases there will be support.”
In the face of accusations and criticism from opponents who have pointed out that both the federal and state and municipal governments “have been overwhelmed by the emergency” and that it was a mistake to eliminate, since the last government, the National Fund for Natural Disasters (Fonden), Sheinbaum said that although this fund does not exist, “there is a budget item for emergencies.”
Find out: Torrential rains in Mexico have left more than 60 dead and dozens missing
“There are enough resources, everything that has to do with the emergency will not be spared because we are still in that period,” added the president.
Sheinabum affirmed that from the censuses, initial support and then greater support will come to the affected families.
“Censuses are being carried out to be able to offer housing to many people, who had their homes on the slopes of the rivers and who, obviously, cannot return to those areas, because they are risk areas” and he anticipated that there will be relocations for those families.
Likewise, the president denied that her Government is going to use support for the population “electorally”, while saying that there is no order prohibiting the help of individuals and that “organization, coordination is required”, something that is centralized through the Secretariat of National Defense (Defense).
This Monday, Mexico reported 64 people dead and 65 more missing, after the heavy rains that hit five states in the center of the country between October 6 and 9, rainfall that left thousands of victims and serious damage to homes, businesses and infrastructure in 111 municipalities.
Since October 10, the Mexican Government has been in permanent session to address the emergency, in coordination with state governments.
With information from EFE.
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