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September 12, 2005
Mexican assistance
It's not exactly fresh news, but I wanted to make reference to the arrival of Mexican military personnel in the United States before it became too stale. Traveling north to assist with Katrina relief operations, the Mexican troops were the first of their kind to have done so since 1846, a nifty historical fact that was included in most of the media coverage last week.
Two pieces in particular, however, stand out for providing more than just the standard coverage of the troops' arrival. The first touches upon a relief convey that crossed the border on its way to assist Katrina refugees in San Antonio:
Mexican Army troops encamped Thursday evening on a field at a former U.S. Air Force base, setting up a mobile kitchen and large tents to sleep in, part of a plan to spend up to a month in San Antonio to help evacuees of Hurricane Katrina.
[...]
They traveled from Mexico City on to U.S. soil for the first time in 159 years, receiving a hero's welcome from small groups of onlookers who lined the highways and streets as they passed.
Honking car horns, "bienvenidos'' signs and cheering people wrapped in or waving Mexican flags welcomed them to San Antonio.
"It makes me feel good that my heritage is helping out the United States,'' said John Ortega, 46, a member of the Jarret Volunteer Fire Department which brought two fire trucks as part of the welcome wagon. "This is historic and I'm glad to see this happen.''
Simultaneously, a Mexican amphibious assault ship bearing marines and supplies has been operating off the Mississippi coast:
"Our president called George Bush, and three days later we came here," said Oscar Martinez Pretelin, an officer aboard the Papaloapan, a 440-foot-long, troop-landing ship. "We are honored to help the United States."
About 75 Mexican Marines landed Thursday on the beach just east of the Beau Rivage casino to begin cleaning up Biloxi, Miss., especially around schools and churches.
One of the Marines, Mario T. Rodriguez, said he left a small city in the far south of Mexico to volunteer for hurricane relief duty. He has a 3-month-old daughter with his wife at home.
"The U.S. is so rich, but even a rich country can need help," he said.
Nothing to add beyond the obvious or already-reported, but I think the Mexican assistance definitely stands out among all the other foreign offers received thus far.
Posted by Daniel Widome at 04:10 PM to Americas
