ACAPULCO, Mexico – The Mexican government searched for victims and continued assessing the damage Saturday from the one-two punch of storms Manuel and Ingrid.
Meanwhile, in Mexico City, a wave of critics charged the government with making natural disasters worse because of poor planning.
“Governments aren’t responsible for the occurrence of severe weather, but they are for the prevention of the effects,” wrote Mexico’s nonprofit Center of Investigation for Development in an online editorial criticizing a federal program to improve infrastructure and relocate communities out of dangerous flood zones. “The National Water Program had good intentions but its execution was at best poor.”
President Enrique Pena Nieto was en route to affected areas Saturday.
Soldiers were still digging through the mud Saturday in La Pintada, the scene of a landslide caused by the two storms, which simultaneously pounded both of Mexico’s coasts last weekend.
So far, 101 have died. The storms affected 24 of Mexico’s 31 states and 371 municipalities, which are the equivalent of counties. More than 58,000 people were evacuated, with 43,000 still remaining in shelters as of late Friday.
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