Speaking to dozens of people affected by last week’s heavy rains, Governor Rubén Rocha Moya asserted in this port that the poor are the ones who suffer from the floods.
During the delivery of aid to 179 affected families, he stated that low-income people with few resources are replacing their damaged belongings.
He claimed to have firsthand knowledge of the ravages of nature, recalling that he also suffered flooding in his childhood due to his economic situation, but that at that time he received no support.
“I used to get flooded when I was a kid because I was very poor, and I didn’t receive any support (…) I know that those who flood are the poor, so poor people can replace things with little; if you support them with little, you can solve their problems,” declared the state governor.
What does the Risk Atlas say?
The reality is that flooding in Mazatlán doesn’t only affect low-income families.
The municipal Risk Atlas itself indicates that 289 of the port’s 400 neighborhoods, equivalent to 70% of the settlements, are prone to this type of impact, representing at least 60,000 vulnerable families.
These areas include not only marginalized neighborhoods, but also subdivisions such as El Toreo and sectors of the hotel and tourist zone, such as Camarón Sábalo Avenue, where a pumping station is being built to mitigate flooding.
Another road that frequently floods is Cruz Lizárraga Avenue, an area where dozens of high-rise apartment buildings are currently being built.
Vulnerability to Climate Change
The Socio-Environmental Vulnerability study, prepared by the civil association Conselva, Costas y Comunidades (Coasts and Communities), for the period ending in 2024, reveals that 20% of Mazatlán’s population, approximately 102,337 people, live with high or very high vulnerability to the effects of climate change, being exposed to three or more climate hazards.
According to the same study, by 2030 the number will increase to 144,307 inhabitants in this condition.
One of the most relevant data is that 310 neighborhoods in the municipality, where more than 200,000 people live, present some level of potential flooding.
Source: oem
