The Times podcast: The drought, this time in northern Mexico

LA Times
·1 min read
MONTERREY, NUEVO LEON - JULY 18: Daniel Ramirez, comes for free water at the Topo Chico plant in Colonia Topo Chico, on Monday, July 18, 2022 in Monterrey, NUEVO LEON. Topo Chico has long allowed local residents to fill up jugs of drinkable water outside the factory. Now people are coming from all over the city, waiting up to four hours to procure water that they will use for basics, like bathing. Nuevo Leon, one the wealthiest states in Mexico, is facing an unprecedented water crisis, with the taps running dry in parts of Monterrey and the surrounding areas. Authorities blame a four-year drought that has almost completely dried up dams and a history of poor water management. Residents have only had water run from their taps for a few hours each day. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
Daniel Ramirez, arrives to get free water at the Topo Chico plant on July 18, 2022, in Monterrey, Mexico. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

A drought has drained the reservoirs that provide most of the water for 5 million residents who live around Monterrey, the financial capital of northern Mexico. The crisis has sparked widespread upheaval. Anger is mounting at government officials who allow the region’s factories to continue pulling water from the strained aquifer via private wells while some residents are left without water for days.

Today, we take a look at the city and an unfolding crisis that experts say is a stark warning for the rest of Mexico and the American West. Read the full transcript.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times foreign correspondent Kate Linthicum

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.