The mayor of García, Manuel Guerra Cavazos, announced that a fire near several industrial plants in the Alcali area had re-ignited strongly, prompting the complete closure of the road to García, known as Heberto Castillo Avenue. This incident caused damage to businesses and a noticeable poor air quality in the metropolitan area of Nuevo León.
Air quality reached extremely poor levels at some stations, such as in Santa Catarina, with others showing very deficient quality. The environmental contingency, activated since Tuesday by the Ministry of Environment of Nuevo León, involved the reduction of industrial activities and the suspension of outdoor activities in schools and sports clubs.
The sky over the city and neighboring municipalities became darkened by a black cloud generated by multiple fires and strong winds, resulting in ash fall in distant areas. Despite this, the environmental contingency was lifted on Wednesday afternoon.
In total, about 200 fires were recorded in the week, worsening climatic conditions in the region. The Government of Nuevo León reported the arrest of five people for starting fires in García and will seek preventive imprisonment for some of them.
Samuel García Sepúlveda, governor, expressed his commitment to punish with full severity those who cause intentional fires in the region, emphasizing the seriousness of the material damage and the danger they pose to firefighters and rescuers. During the worst moment, 239 fires were reported in 5 hours, of which three are still active but under control, including in Santa Catarina, García, and the Sierra de Picachos.
