noticias

El occiso sufrió una volcadura en el kayak mientras navegaba en el lago de Chapala. Foto: cortesía.

Redacción.-Un habitante en San Antonio Tlayacapan sufrió un accidente luego de volcar su embarcación, perdiendo la vida por sumersión en el Lago de Chapala.

El ahora occsiso es una persona de una familia conocida en San Antonio Tlayacapan: el ahora occiso, fue localizado sin vida 15 minutos después de la volcadura del kayak, a las 2:15 pm de acuerdo al reporte de las autoridades.

Federico Aguayo fue localizado sin vida 15 minutos después de la volcadura del kayak. Foto: cortesía.

 Only three of the 20 stores open at the height of Holy Week. Photo: Héctor Ruiz.

Héctor Ruiz Mejía (Jocotepec).- Jocotepec’s boardwalk merchants reported low sales despite the Easter holiday period. Merchants in the 20 stores located on the boardwalk said that after two pandemic years, this holiday period has not generated the income they expected, as sales are down by almost 50 percent in contrast to previous years.

In spite of the fact that the projected economic revenue for this vacation season for Holy Week and Easter was $5,400,000 pesos, according toJocotepec Directorate of Tourism and Artisan Promotion Victor Manuel Loza Ornelas,  that goal has not been reached.

«The truth is that it has been very lonely compared to pre-pandemic Holy Weeks, even in previous years we were five people working here in the store, but this week there was only me,» said a vendor of nieve de garrafa, a Mexican sorbet.

She also said that one of the factors that could have affected tourism over the weekend was the protest that took place on Thursday, April 14 in Chapala, between vendors against the City Hall, since many tourists were unable to get through the blockade.

Insecurity and the economic crisis did not allow for the expected economic revenue on the Jocotepec boardwalk. Photo: Héctor Ruiz.

Another of those interviewed thought  that the poor sales could have been due to the  insecurity that has been experienced in recent months in the municipality.

«Fortunately this year we have had some sales, unlike other years, when almost no people came and many of those who came brought their lunch boxes,» said one of the vendors, who for years has sold hamburgers, seafood tacos and hot dogs.

Luck has not been so different for the boat tours, because in spite of having a good Holy Week until the cut-off on Wednesday, April 20, it was empty, say the personnel in charge of the boat tours.

«Now there are so many accidents, so much insecurity, and on Sundays the National Guard is here, and as a worker you do feel safer, but people are afraid and it is reflected in sales,» he concluded.

Translated by Kerry Watson

The van rolled a few meters.  

Editor: A pickup truck traveling on the Jocotepec bypass went off the asphalt, fell down a slope and overturned. The incident occurred during the afternoon of April 15. 

After the truck rolled a few meters down a slope near the flagpole, the driver of the gray truck was trapped inside the unit. The Civil Protection and Firefighters of Jocotepec helped the victim, who was not seriously injured.

Translated by Nita Rudy

Drivers park their vehicles on the bicycle path. Photo: Semanario Laguna.

Two months ago, when the section of the San Juan Cosalá bicycle lane was approximately 90 percent complete, neighbors in the area began to regularly use the spaces to set up businesses. 

Neighbors of these areas and residents who pass through the road have commented on the lack of accessibility and the improper use of the bicycle lane.

«The bicycle lane is for cycling and walking at any time, but no, you put yourself in danger when passing through that street, next to the road, because there is not enough room to pass. You must go into the road, and it is not fair.  That is the reason the other sidewalk was left free, there to sell.  The bicycle lane was created to avoid accidents, not to cause them,» commented an annoyed neighbor.

There are more than three businesses that make use of this public space, in the stretch between Cardenal Street and the crossroads, as an opportunity to  expand their space, while others use it as a parking lot. 

Along the road, it is common to find cars obstructing traffic. Photo: Semanario Laguna

«The truth is that I don’t have money to rent a place and the bicycle lane is very wide and nobody has told me anything,» commented a merchant interviewed.

Some vendors opted to move to the other side of the road, after being told that they could not continue to set up in that area or there could be a sanction from the authorities. 

«When they told us we could not be on the bike path it was difficult to change everything.  Some moved, others stayed. A new vendor took over a space that had been used regularly but was vacated. There are people who park their cars as if it were their own house,» concluded another of those consulted. 

Translated by Nita Rudy

Painting auctioned in front of the little chapel of the Rosary. Photo: Efrén González

Sofía Medeles(Ajijic).- The auction of a painting by Efrén González began on April 17 and will end on April 22. González painted live in front of the Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary.  Although the auction won’t end until April 22, when the painting will be delivered to the high bidder,  the highest bid in the first hours was $650 or 13,000 pesos. The proceeds will be invested in the restoration works of the Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary.

Translated by Elisabeth Shields

A committee of five people elected by the people in a previous meeting listed the points to be discussed. Photo: Jazmín Stengel.

Jazmín Stengel(Chapala).- Following demonstrations by neighbors in San Nicolás de Ibarra, Chapala authorities promised to investigate the veracity of the Hydraulic Services Feasibility Report approved in 2019, so that the “San Nicolás” subdivision could be connected to the public drinking water network.

The contractor for  the developer Obras Civiles de Occidente arrived at the water intake last April 12, ready to connect the subdivision to the network of the only drinking water well that supplies the San Nicolás de Ibarra community. The subdivision plans 30  new homes, which provoked a demonstration by residents.

This action resulted in the removal of the hydraulic pipe that had previously been installed to connect to the public drinking water network without authorization from the Drinking Water and Sewerage System (SIMAPA), and also led to a subsequent dialogue between the community and the municipal government.

More than 100 people met with the authorities to prevent the San Nicolás subdivision from connecting to the public water supply. Photo: Jazmín Stengel.

During the meeting on April 20, Comptroller Absalón García Ochoa, SIMAPA Director Fernando Antonio Monreal Mendoza, and chief of staff Joaquín Huerta Barrios were present. They arrived almost two hours late because they explained meeting was not scheduled in advance.

«Our priority is to supply the people» emphasized García Ochoa, who also explained that only SIMAPA personnel are authorized to intervene in publicly owned pipelines. 

A review of the Hydraulic Services Feasibility Opinion, approved by the last administration (2018 – 2021) was also promised and if it is not  correct, it will be revoked, SIMAPA said.

«In a hypothetical case, if we would have surplus (water) it is within our  authority to  allow  individuals to connect to a regulated public network with meters» , detailed Absalón. In other words, the municipality can, but is not obliged to, provide water services to private developments.

The  residents are adamant and prefer that the water be only for the town, because  the system were connected to the development; they would only have water for two hours a day,  they claimed.

Mayor’s Comptroller Absalón García Ochoa front, Fernando Antonio Monreal Mendoza, head of the Municipal System of Potable Water and Sewage, SIMAPA, center, and Joaquín Huerta Barrios, chief of staff, on the right, during the meeting with neighbors of San Nicolás de Ibarra. Photo: Jazmín Stengel.

At present, for those who live in the center of the town, water flows constantly from 7:00 in the morning to 10:00 at night. However, in the upper part of the northeastern part of the town water is only pumped for a couple of hours in the morning.

This is why the inhabitants demand  that the water reaches the middle and high schools as well as the neighbors located in the upper part of the town, and asked that these needs be solved before connecting water to the subdivisions.  That may be difficult because  the second well that was opened near the school during the 2015 – 2018 administration is dry and cannot be expanded and used,  according to the director of SIMAPA.

The only well that serves  water to San Nicolás de Ibarra lifts 22 liters per second and is about one hundred meters from the subdivision. Meanwhile, there is another well at the opposite end whose drinking water line is only five meters away and has water outlets of 4 to 8 inches, according to local residents.

The water well located at the end of Juarez Street in  San Nicolas de Ibarra was built approximately 40 years ago  by the people themselves and was administered by  the town residents  for more than 20 years, until SIMAPA Chapala took charge of it.

Translated  by Patrick O’Heffernan

Imagen con fines ilustrativos. Foto: National Geographic. 

Redacción.- Se prevén lluvias, descargas eléctricas y  posibles granizadas, durante esta noche en el Área Metropolitana de Guadalajara. Además de vientos fuertes y posibles torbellinos, informó la Comisión Nacional del Agua ( CONAGUA) Jalisco. 

En Jalisco serán las Regiones Altos Norte, Altos Sur, Centro, Ciénega, Lagunas y Sierra de Amula, las que registren tormentas eléctricas. 

Protección Civil y Bomberos de Guadalajara informó que las nubes de tormenta crecen esta noche, principalmente al Norte y Oriente de Guadalajara. En los municipios ribereños, como Chapala y Jocotepec, se registran rachas fuertes de vientos. 

En Michoacán, las regiones donde se pronostica actividad eléctrica son: Cuitzeo, Bajío, Lerma-Chapala y Oriente, informó la CONAGUA.  

Ricardo Covarrubias, who was recently accused of dispossessing a property in Ajijic from its owners, is also linked to a megaproject that committed a fraud on the ejido community in Santa Cruz de la Soledad. Photo: Facebook. 

Staff. – A man involved in the recent case of attempted land dispossession in Ajijic was also identified as one of those involved in the failed mega development project that seeks to build in Santa Cruz de la Soledad in the municipality of Chapala. 

An affected person, who asked not to be named, stated that the man who appears in the video of the Ajijic complaint is the same one who has been involved in the appropriation of the ejido land (communally-owned land), a problem that the community’s ejido association has been dealing with since 2014. This person asserted that the construction of this project has not begun because there is an ongoing lawsuit.

Ricardo Covarrubias claimed to be the owner of the Ajijic property «Los Tepetates,» which he tried to appropriate. He is also one of the owners of the company Santa Cruz Inmobiliaria de Chapala S.A. de C.V., a company that planned a 164 hectares (about 400 acres) mega development of 3,066 single-family houses, 812 duplexes, 400 houses for senior citizens, a hotel, club house, golf course, area for horseback riding activities and a hospital. The company was created solely for this project.

The development, which would include the Junco, El Cántaro and San Francisco hills, as well as the dam, was criticized for its size and lack of sustainability. In addition, both the construction company and the Pension Institute of the State of Jalisco (IPEJAL) are involved in a controversy because they have committed a fraud against the ejido community of Santa Cruz, awarding the ejido land for common use, along with several parcels of land totaling the 164 hectares, acquired with 19 neighbors, all of them former employees, attorneys-in-fact or “loan sharks” of the companies of the Covarrubias Valenzuela family.

Likewise, the complainant alleged that there are people from the current administration of Chapala involved in some way in the development.

A group of affected people will meet to try to stop what they call a «real estate mafia.»

Translated by Sandy Britton

 Los hechos violentos se registraron durante la tarde del 25 de abril. Foto: Twitter. 

Redacción.- La Fiscalía del Estado de Jalisco (FE) inició una investigación para esclarecer los hechos en los que perdieron la vida un hombre y una mujer, luego de una agresión por arma de fuego ocurrida ayer 25 de abril en un establecimiento de bebidas.

La FE detalló que inicialmente se reportaron detonaciones por arma de fuego aproximadamente a las 18:20 horas, por lo que policías municipales realizaron la labor de primeros respondientes, acudiendo al punto referido el cual se sitúa sobre la carretera Guadalajara – Morelia, en la localidad de San Luis Soyatlán, en el municipio de Tuxcueca.

En el lugar los agentes confirmaron que al interior del negocio se encontraba un masculino sin vida con lesiones en tórax y cráneo por arma de fuego, mientras que una femenina, quien se encontraba herida, fue trasladada a recibir atención médica; sin embargo, al arribo al puesto de socorros, murió.

El agente del Ministerio Público y Policías de Investigación acudieron al sitio y comenzaron con las indagatorias para el esclarecimiento del hecho y captura de quien resulte responsable.

En la escena se localizaron diversos casquillos, los cuales fueron asegurados con el apoyo de peritos del Instituto Jalisciense de Ciencias Forenses. Los cuerpos fueron trasladados al anfiteatro de la región, para la práctica de la autopsia que establece la ley y en espera de su identificación oficial.

The truck was left on the retaining wall.

Editor. An accident involving a personnel transport truck left eight people injuredin Poncitlán,. The accident occurred at kilometer 38 of the Santa Rosa La Barca highway, within the municipality of Poncitlán, during the early morning of April 16.

Unit involved in an accident on the highway.

 The accident occurred after the driver of the truck lost control and impacted the retaining wall,  launching the truck onto the retaining wall

Of those injured, seven suffered minor injuries while one person was reported to be in fair condition and was taken to receive medical attention.  The slightly injured people reported that they were very scared.

Translated  by Patrick O’Heffernan