Human ‘Avalanche’ Forms in Downtown Merida 3 Days Before Christmas Eve

Since Tuesday, the movement of shoppers in Merida’s Historic Center has been enormous, as thousands of people flock to the various established stores to buy everything they need for the Christmas celebration, which also causes traffic congestion.

After two years, the heart of Mérida is beating fast due to the notable influx of people, in addition to employees and tourists.

Due to the avalanche of people that from early in the morning circulated in the main streets of the first part of the city, many pedestrians opted to walk on the asphalt, as they could not fit on the sidewalks.

From early in the morning, thousands of Meridanos went to the various stores in the Historic Center to stock up on everything they needed for the Christmas celebration, from foodstuffs to decorations, without neglecting gifts and toys.

The stores were crowded, after the low affluence they had in the Christmas seasons of 2020 and 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevails.

Unfortunately, among the population, protective and personal hygiene measures to cut the chain of transmission of the rapidly spreading pathology are already minimal.

It should be noted that the use of masks is not mandatory in the state of Yucatan due to the decrease in COVID-19 cases and the low number of people hospitalized.

The crowd of shoppers caused traffic congestion problems on many streets, and in the desperation of the drivers, the noise generated by the excessive use of the horn was unbearable.

The elements of the Merida Municipal Police (PMM) could not cope with the traffic chaos; traffic got out of control between 11:00 and 14:00 hours, and “returned” at 17:00 hours.

The situation became even more complicated at 61st Street and 60th Street, since in front of the Government Palace there is a protest, whose demonstrator put a tent in the middle of the stamped concrete, so the traffic was diverted.

Fortunately, no accidents were reported, except for people who tripped while walking or were slightly hit by a vehicle, and in most cases, those affected chose to leave.

The panorama does not look different for the next few days, especially next Saturday, December 24; in the following days, it will go down and will have a new peak before the celebration of December 31.

TYT Newsroom