A sightseeing excursion turned into a tragedy for one family in the municipality of Cuetzalan, Puebla. Araceli Antonio Peña and Agustín Julián Benito, two of the survivors who became trapped in the Chichicazapan caves on Tuesday, have criticized the lack of regulation governing these tours and the serious safety failures they say led to the disaster.
Authorities continue search-and-rescue operations for Ismael Peña, 40, and his daughters, Jazmín Lizbeth Peña Antonio, 20, and Karime Antonio Peña, 24, who remain missing.
According to the survivors, the tour was progressing normally until weather conditions began to worsen.
“We went in while it had just started raining. The guide told us to enter the caves so we wouldn’t get wet. We went inside, and we had no idea it was going to flood,” Araceli said.
The decision to move deeper into the caves to shelter from the rain proved disastrous.
Once inside the main chamber, the water level rose suddenly and with tremendous force, leaving those in the narrow passage with virtually no opportunity to escape.
Agustín Julián Benito described the moment the flooding began while the guide was leading the group of seven people.
“We saw the water rising rapidly, but the guide shouted for us to go back,” he said.
However, the evacuation quickly became chaotic because of the cave’s layout and the apparent lack of emergency preparedness for flooding.
“Those who were sitting tried to turn back, but you can’t move backward in that position. I was only able to help one woman. There were more people ahead of us, and I couldn’t help them. The water rose and swept them away,” Agustín recalled.
He also stated that the guide did not carry any ropes and that the life jackets provided were not appropriate for the powerful currents inside a flooded cave.
Family’s Desperation and Appeal to Authorities
The tragedy has had a devastating impact on Araceli Antonio Peña, who confirmed that the three people swept away by the current are members of her immediate family.
“The ones still missing are my two daughters and my husband,” she said through tears.
She urged state rescue teams to continue their efforts.
“Please keep helping us. We want to bring them home, and we want them to be found.”
Araceli also called on tourism authorities to strengthen oversight of adventure tours in Cuetzalan.
“They need to pay more attention and properly regulate the guides because this could have been prevented. We trusted them.”
Rescue Operations Continue
After escaping the danger, Agustín said he walked to downtown Cuetzalan to alert emergency responders. Along the way, he encountered a police patrol, which quickly returned to the site with ropes and rescue personnel.
By Wednesday morning, specialized cave rescue teams, Civil Protection personnel, and police officers were continuing the search inside the Chichicazapan cave system.
Rescue efforts have been complicated by ongoing adverse weather conditions in the region, while the victims’ relatives continue waiting for official updates on the three missing family members.
Source: jornada
