Governor Mauricio Vila Dosal formally requested the Federal Government the Declaration of Emergency for 33 eastern municipalities affected by the path that tropical cyclone Zeta followed in Yucatecan territory with a category 1 hurricane intensity.
The governor turned the request on Wednesday, October 18 night to the National Coordination of Civil Protection, of the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection, so that, in accordance with the guidelines of the Natural Disaster Fund (Fonden), Yucatan can access the resources of the Emergency Attention Fund to continue with the support and attention to the population of the different municipalities and affected communities.
The request for an Emergency Declaration is for the municipalities most affected by hurricane Zeta, such as: Buctzotz, Calotmul, Cenotillo, Chemax, Chichimilá, Chikindzonot, Cuncunul, Dzidzantún, Dzilam de Bravo, Dzilam González, Dzitás, Dzoncauich, Espita , Huhí, Hunucmá, Kaua, Panabá, Quintana Roo, Río Lagartos, San Felipe, Sinanché, Sucilá, Tahmek, Tekal de Venegas, Tekom, Temax, Temozón, Tinum, Tixcacalcupul, Tizimín, Uayma, Valladolid and Yobaín.
The head of the State Coordination of Civil Protection, Enrique Alcocer Basto, recalled that the populations of these municipalities in the eastern part of the state suffered in the early hours of October 27, 2020, throughout the night and into the morning, hurricane-force winds, torrential rains, storm surge and other severe meteorological effects associated with the weather phenomenon.
Alcocer Basto indicated that the 33 most affected municipalities in the state reported severe damage to homes, flooded streets, trees and toppled sheet roofs, lack of electricity and drinking water, damage to high voltage poles and public lighting, poles and power lines toppled by the wind, infrastructural damage to small boats on the coastal towns, and severe damage and flooding at crops all over the state.
He said that in the request for a declaration, they are asked to consider the previous effects on these municipalities due to the weather, first came tropical storm Gamma and Hurricane Delta with continuous rains, floods, saturation of the water tables, and strong winds.
He pointed out that other effects to consider are the softening of the soil and the structure of the buildings, current conditions that have severely weakened them in such a short period of time, and exposure to inclement weather.
As for the population most affected by the conditions mentioned above, the official reported that the approximation is 384,780 inhabitants distributed in Buctzotz (8,887); Calotmul (3,992); Cenotillo (3,886); Chemax (36,881); Chichimilá (8,371); Chikindzonot (4,166); Cuncunul (1,572); Dzidzantún (8,176); Dzilam de Bravo (2,744); Dzilam González (6,120); Dzitas (3,783); Dzoncauich (2,609); Spigot (16,071); Huhi (5,218); Hunucmá (32,475); Kaua (3,119); Panabá (7,792) and Quintana Roo (963).
Río Lagartos (3,502) were also affected; San Felipe (1,945); Sinanché (3,088); Sucilá (3,918); Tahmek (3,641); Tekal de Venegas (2,616); Tekom (3,216); Temax (7,210); Temozón (15,503); Tinum (11,942); Tixcacalcupul (7,157); Tizimin (77,621); Uayma (4,056); Valladolid (80,313); and Yobaín (2,227).
Through this Declaration, the Governor told those federal authorities responsible that the damage caused by cyclonic events has exceeded the operational and financial capacity of the state, and of the affected municipalities by the magnitude of the natural phenomenon that hit the peninsula.
Therefore, he expressed his government’s commitment to observe and comply with the provisions, guidelines, and other applicable regulations regarding the procedures to obtain the resources derived from the Natural Disaster Fund: Fonden.
