As coastal communities brace for yet another tropical storm (“Norma,” see sidebar), clean-up work continues in the wake of Hurricane Lidia, which pummeled Mexico’s Pacific coast a week ago.
Although not as deadly as some hurricanes in recent memory, Lidia caused significant damage along the Jalisco coastline, especially in the municipality of Tomatlan, located to the south of Puerto Vallarta, where Mayor Daniel Ruiz Benavides said 1,700 homes were affected to different degrees.
Tomatlán is one of Jalisco’s poorest municipalities, where many people live in makeshift and structurally deficient properties.
Damage to properties was also reported in nine other Jalisco municipalities: Cuautitlán de García Barragán, Unión de Tula, Casimiro Castillo, Cabo Corrientes, Cihuatlán, Tomatlán, Autlán de Navarro, Mascota and Talpa de Allende.
Since October 11, state and federal authorities, as well as the military, have provided material assistance in 60 communities affected by the hurricane. According to a Jalisco government press release, 3,137 separate “apoyos asistenciales” (acts of assistance) were carried out through October 17. These include the delivery of food parcels and supplies.
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