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| Mexico withdraws Harvey aid offer as it focuses on earthquake recovery | Mexico withdraws Harvey aid offer as it focuses on earthquake recovery |
| (4 months later) | |
| About 2.5 million Mexicans are in need of aid after last week’s massive quake, leading the foreign ministry to withdraw its offer to US hurricane victims | |
| David Agren | |
| Mon 11 Sep 2017 20.08 BST | |
| Last modified on Thu 5 Oct 2017 16.52 BST | |
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| Mexico has withdrawn its offer to help victims of Hurricane Harvey in Texas, saying it needed to redirect resources to its own southern states which are still reeling from last week’s massive earthquake. | Mexico has withdrawn its offer to help victims of Hurricane Harvey in Texas, saying it needed to redirect resources to its own southern states which are still reeling from last week’s massive earthquake. |
| As torrential rains lashed Houston in late August, Mexico offered to send food, generators, medical staff and mobile kitchens to help hurricane victims, but on Monday, the foreign ministry said that the aid was needed at home after Friday’s quake. | As torrential rains lashed Houston in late August, Mexico offered to send food, generators, medical staff and mobile kitchens to help hurricane victims, but on Monday, the foreign ministry said that the aid was needed at home after Friday’s quake. |
| In a statement, the ministry said that the death toll from magnitude 8.1 earthquake had reached 96, while officials estimate 2.5 million Mexicans are in need of some sort of assistance. | In a statement, the ministry said that the death toll from magnitude 8.1 earthquake had reached 96, while officials estimate 2.5 million Mexicans are in need of some sort of assistance. |
| Aid has arrived in some of the affected areas – especially the municipality of Juchitán on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec – but local media reported that survivors in some marginalized areas were still waiting for relief to arrive. | Aid has arrived in some of the affected areas – especially the municipality of Juchitán on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec – but local media reported that survivors in some marginalized areas were still waiting for relief to arrive. |
| “Given these circumstance, the Mexican government will channel all available logistical support to serve the families and communities affected in the national territory,” the foreign ministry statement said. | “Given these circumstance, the Mexican government will channel all available logistical support to serve the families and communities affected in the national territory,” the foreign ministry statement said. |
| The temblor reduced buildings to rubble in swaths of the poor states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, where residents pick through crumbled concrete in search of survivors. | The temblor reduced buildings to rubble in swaths of the poor states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, where residents pick through crumbled concrete in search of survivors. |
| Oaxaca governor Alejandro Murat told local media that some 12,000 homes had been damaged. Residents in some cities were sleeping in the streets, scared to enter their homes as more than 1,000 aftershocks have rattled the region. | Oaxaca governor Alejandro Murat told local media that some 12,000 homes had been damaged. Residents in some cities were sleeping in the streets, scared to enter their homes as more than 1,000 aftershocks have rattled the region. |
| One widely-shared image of the destruction showed a man rescuing a Mexican flag from the rubble of the partially destroyed city hall in Juchitán. | One widely-shared image of the destruction showed a man rescuing a Mexican flag from the rubble of the partially destroyed city hall in Juchitán. |
| “The flag is our national symbol. It is part of our identity and I was not willing to see it buried in the rubble,” the man, Ángel Sánchez Santiago, told the newspaper La Razón. “It was a sign that we residents of Juchitán should not be on our knees in the face of this phenomenon, we have to be strong to get ahead.” | “The flag is our national symbol. It is part of our identity and I was not willing to see it buried in the rubble,” the man, Ángel Sánchez Santiago, told the newspaper La Razón. “It was a sign that we residents of Juchitán should not be on our knees in the face of this phenomenon, we have to be strong to get ahead.” |
| Commenters on social media marveled at Sánchez’s patriotism, in spite of his meagre salary of 2,000 pesos (£85) per month. In contrast, Mexican politicians were widely condemned for trying to take advantage of the earthquake relief effort – such as the government of Veracruz state, which included political propaganda with its assistance bundles. | Commenters on social media marveled at Sánchez’s patriotism, in spite of his meagre salary of 2,000 pesos (£85) per month. In contrast, Mexican politicians were widely condemned for trying to take advantage of the earthquake relief effort – such as the government of Veracruz state, which included political propaganda with its assistance bundles. |
| President Enrique Peña Nieto was expected to return to the affected areas on Monday. Over the weekend, he tweeted “solidarity with the population of Florida” as Hurricane Irma struck, but Mexicans noted that his US counterpart had failed to even mention the earthquake. | President Enrique Peña Nieto was expected to return to the affected areas on Monday. Over the weekend, he tweeted “solidarity with the population of Florida” as Hurricane Irma struck, but Mexicans noted that his US counterpart had failed to even mention the earthquake. |
| Mexico’s offer of assistance with Harvey was made the same day Donald Trump tweeted fresh invective toward Mexico. He threatened, again, to rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement and disparaged Mexico as “one of the highest crime nations in the world”. | Mexico’s offer of assistance with Harvey was made the same day Donald Trump tweeted fresh invective toward Mexico. He threatened, again, to rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement and disparaged Mexico as “one of the highest crime nations in the world”. |
| The Mexican offer was never accepted by the Trump administration, though some officials such as secretary of state Rex Tillerson and Texas governor thanked Mexico for its generosity. | The Mexican offer was never accepted by the Trump administration, though some officials such as secretary of state Rex Tillerson and Texas governor thanked Mexico for its generosity. |
| Mexico | |
| Americas | |
| Earthquakes | |
| Hurricanes | |
| Natural disasters and extreme weather | |
| Hurricane Harvey | |
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