Mexico withdraws Hurricane Harvey aid offer after Trump fails to send condolences for their earthquake – U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson calls hours later
By Lucy Pasha-Robinson
13 September 2017
(The Independent) – Mexico has withdrawn its offer of aid to US victims of Hurricane Harvey after a 8.1 magnitude earthquake hit the southern states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, killing 96 people.
A statement released by Mexico’s Foreign Ministry said the aid would now be redirected to help those affected by the devastating earthquake and Hurricane Katia that wreaked havoc on home soil.
As many as 5,000 homes were destroyed in Chiapas, with authorities fearing the damage in Oaxaca could be even worse.”Given this situation, the Mexican government will channel all available logistical support to the families and communities that have been affected in Mexico and has informed the Texas and US governments that, unfortunately, on this occasion, it won’t be possible to provide the assistance originally offered to Texas in late August in the wake of Hurricane Harvey,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.Mexico had pledged to offer food, generators, and medical aid to Texas “as good neighbours should always do in trying times.”The Mexican Red Cross also sent 33 volunteers to help the relief effort in Houston. But the US President never formally accepted the offer and continued to attack the country on Twitter, calling the country “one of the highest crime nations in the world.” [more]
