Hotels in Cancun and surrounding resorts are experiencing an unprecedented heat wave with intermittent power that sometimes leaves tourists and locals without air conditioning and fresh water.
Towns in northern Quintana Roo, which includes Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Tulum, have been experiencing daily blackouts that have also caused interruptions in the supply of fresh water that relies on high-voltage electrical power, a hotel association complained via a statement this Thursday.
The National Center for Energy Control said that supply was guaranteed throughout the country and that an “alert” it reported on Tuesday was temporary.
Power demand peaked on June 20 and was 9 percent above the peak recorded in 2022, he said, adding that the increase in demand was mainly concentrated in Mexico City and Monterrey.
The current heat wave plaguing Mexico has been too “aggressive and prolonged,” warned the head of Mexico’s meteorological service.
“We have had losses of around 500 million pesos in recent days due to damage to air conditioners, household appliances, televisions and computers that do not support the constant change of energy,” explained Sergio León, head of the Entrepreneurs for Quintana Roo group in a telephone interview.
The heat will not ‘let go’ of Mexico
There is a 50 percent chance that above-normal temperatures will persist in much of Mexico through July 11, according to the global hazards outlook from the US Climate Prediction Center.
The same oppressive heat that has been plaguing Texas is also scorching Mexico, and it doesn’t appear to be any real relief until early next week, said Tom Kines, a meteorologist with commercial forecaster AccuWeather in State College, Pennsylvania.
“The infrastructure of the state is overwhelmed,” León said. “And it’s a bad image for hotels and restaurants that can’t operate properly for tourists.”
Quintana Roo has been experiencing blackouts from time to time since last year, León said, “but this heat wave has definitely increased the frequency with which they occur.”
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Thursday that he had not received any report indicating that there were problems with the supply.
“There have been some blackouts in some communities, but that is normal. There is an increase in demand, but we have a generation surplus, and it will be enough”, he stressed.
The Association of Hotels of Cancun, Puerto Morelos and Isla Mujeres called on the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) and Governor Mara Lezama to guarantee improvements in the state’s infrastructure.
CFE did not respond to a request for comment on the recent cuts.
“We are a world-class tourist destination and basic services such as energy and water have to be up to par,” he remarked.
Source: El Financiero
