mexican state of tabasco flooded; US slow to notice

by: los anjalis

Sat Nov 03, 2007 at 01:05:09 AM PDT

Over at LAist, Andy Sternberg holds the media accountable:

Our fires were on front pages around the world. So how come when Mexico experiences "one of the worst [catastrophes] in the country's recent history" it barely garners mention in the states? The Tabasco flood has been the BBC's top story for 48 hours and not only is the Beeb on the story -- bbcnews.com is seeking "your pictures" and publishing "your stories" in addition to video.

The LA Times / America doesn't care about Mexicans, as Kanye might say.

UPDATE: The Saturday LAT relates a dire situation in Tabasco:

"The scene here is terrible, it's biblical," said Javier Velazco, assistant director of the Red Cross in Tabasco. "We're attending to thousands of people. We're delivering food, rope and water, but it's not enough. We need everybody's help."

The Red Cross is accepting donations here.

And some preliminary information on the health consequences of the flooding (Al Jazeera news):

The flooding has raised fears of possible outbreaks of cholera and other waterborne diseases.

Mauricio Hernandez, a federal health official, said: "With so many people packed together there is a chance that infectious diseases could spread."

Officials tested for 600 suspected cases of cholera, a waterborne sickness which is often fatal but has not been reported in Mexico for at least six years, but none was positive, according to Hernandez.

The government has also sent 20,000 Hepatitis A vaccinations and was giving booster shots to children to prevent outbreaks, Hernandez said.

But medical care was difficult because at least 50 of the state's hospitals and medical centres had flooded.

In September, I worked in a hospital in Chiapas, a bordering state and the southern most state of Mexico.  It would rain for 2 days straight, a downpour (which was even louder at night in our sleeping quarters which had corrugated iron roofs), and somedays we'd walk through a few inches of rain.  It looks like a significant amount of Chiapas is now also being flooded by a few feet.

If you've got more information or know of other ways that help can be provided, please share in the comments below or write a post.  thanks.