In wake of 7.2 earthquake, Mexican villagers suffer from lack of water, power

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In a poor farming village about 20 miles south of Mexicali, the Baja government was setting up a relief center Monday to distribute blankets, food and water for those whose homes were damaged or flooded. Hundreds of people, mostly families, have begun lining up, some of them walking miles to get to the center.

Scattered throughout Colonia de la Puerta, hundreds of ramshackle homes made of adobe or brick, with tin or tar-paper roofs, collapsed after Sunday’s magnitude 7.2 earthquake. Many people are sleeping outside or in tents.

Government workers were busy Monday setting up a large tent to provide shelter while social service agencies were setting up to offer assistance. There were no reports of injuries.

The Mexican Army is here to help keep control and President Felipe Calderon is scheduled to arrive Monday afternoon.

The lines at the relief center were mostly orderly and government officials said they did not anticipate any problems.

“We all know each other in this area,” said Hugo Flores, a government worker. “No one will cause a problem because, if he does, we will know him.”
“This is a seismic area so we try to be prepared,” said Marco Antonio, Undersecretary for Public Security for Baja. “But this was bigger than we anticipated. We’re doing our best to put things together.”

Continue reading: Poor Mexican villagers struggle to cope without water and power in wake of 7.2 earthquake

-- Tony Perry in Colonia de la Puerta, Mexico

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