According to the latest update of the Weekly Epidemiological Surveillance Report of the General Directorate of Epidemiology of the federal Ministry of Health, a quarter of the incidents of health damage due to cold in the country have occurred in the state of Chihuahua.
From October to the second week of January, 59 incidents of health damage due to weather conditions have been reported nationwide, of which 15 are located in the state, that is, 25 percent of the national incidence.
Among the cases treated in the state, 13 correspond to carbon monoxide poisoning and two to hypothermia.
Chihuahua and San Luis Potosí lead the list of deaths due to cold, with two each in the current winter season.
The General Directorate of Municipal Civil Protection reported that the temporary shelter ‘El Barreal’ is already operating, from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. the following day.
Sergio Rodríguez, head of the agency, said that work continues to provide safe spaces for the most vulnerable people so that they can cover their basic needs to protect themselves during the winter season.
He commented that the shelter is open 24 hours a day if necessary due to weather conditions, as happened last week. The shelter is located on 20 de Noviembre Street, next to the Benito Juárez Monument.
Those citizens who know people without a roof over their heads can call the emergency phone number 9-1-1, so that the authorities can locate them and transfer them to the shelter, in order to provide them with the necessary support.
To avoid hypothermia, the recommendations are to use thick, woolen winter clothing, as well as a scarf, hat, gloves, and “generally we tell them that they have to cover themselves like an onion, why? Because they have to have several layers of clothing,” said Verónica Carrión, head of Epidemiology of the Juárez Health Region.
“We have the possibility of having extreme conditions in our city,” he warned.
In this regard, he said that one of the issues that is worrying is the homeless people or those who live in vulnerable conditions. Also the lighting of heaters inside homes, which can cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
Source: eldiariodechihuahua
