San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico

2004 Archives

To review articles previously featured in our local news, we have kept these as our archives. Much more detailed versions are available in another area of our site.

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8/9/04

Enjoy a safe and happy Labor Day week end in Mexico
According to a communiqué from the Secretaria de Turismo, starting this coming Friday and in coordination with the three levels of government, Operation Labor Day will be in effect to render information and assistance from day 3 to day 6 of this month, to the many visitors expected in our play lands for the weekend. About 40 dependencies and rescue groups, with more than 500 people in about 190 vehicles will cruise the roads and cities, helping at detention centers, monitoring hotel occupation, and giving assistance and direction where needed.

Según un comunicado oficial de la Secretaria de Turismo, a partir de este viernes y en coordinación con los tres niveles del gobierno, el operativo Labor Day, estará en efecto para proveer información y asistencia a partir del día 3 al día 6 de este mes, a los muchos visitantes esperados en nuestros sitios de recreo. Para el fin de semana cerca de 40 dependencias y grupos de rescate, con más de 500 personas en cerca de 190 vehículos cruzarán los caminos y las ciudades, verificando los centros de detención, supervisando la ocupación hotelera, y atender, dar continuación y solución de quejas y asesoría. J. Tapia

Several thousand flyers will again be passed out to visitors entering the town for Labor Day weekend to acquaint them with the town rules and regulations and to give them information as to what to do in the event of problems. The Delegado, the Department of Tourism, and San Felipe's Internet Service Provider are promoting this project and will hand out the leaflets to the vehicles entering town on Calzada Chetumal.

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8/11/04
S.D. man, friend die in dune buggy accident
As reported in the UNION-TRIBUNE
A San Diego man and a friend from Illinois were killed when a water truck slammed into their dune buggy outside the Gulf of California resort town of San Felipe, Mexico, authorities said yesterday.
Todd Smedley, 40, was killed in the crash around 1 p.m. Sunday on a two-lane desert highway linking San Felipe and Mexicali, Mexican authorities said. David Bloom of Peoria, Ill., who also died, was visiting Smedley for a weekend trip to Mexico, said Smedley's mother, Marianne E. Smedley of Varna, Ill
Smedley, formerly of Carlsbad, worked as a salesman for a company specializing in water treatment, his mother said last night. He grew up in La Grange, Ill., and lived in the San Diego area for the past seven or eight years, she said.
The dune buggy was crushed in the accident, officials said. Smedley was killed instantly, and Bloom died a short time later after being transported to a medical clinic in San Felipe by Red Cross personnel, Mexican officials said.
The water truck's driver, Juan Cortez, survived the accident and told authorities he was headed to San Felipe, 112 miles south of Mexicali, the capital of Baja California, when the dune buggy pulled out in front of him from the side of the highway, Mexican officials said. Police said they were not planning a criminal investigation.
Smedley is survived by his wife, Jeanne, and two children, a girl, 10, and a boy, 9.
Funeral arrangements were incomplete last night.
The Smedley family was hoping the body could be repatriated to the United States today following completion of paperwork required by Mexican authorities, Smedley's mother said. Submitted by J Tapia

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8/9/04
Election in Mexicali,
Seemingly, peace among political parties is back since the elections were held. The electoral authorities put an end to the war on numbers and speculations, that started almost immediately after the voting polls were closed, the first Sunday in August. With the conclusion of the official results, and the decision of the electorate (few in numbers at that) who were out to vote, so ended the citizen mobilizations made by followers of PRI and the coalition behind Samuel Ramos. They had been trying to revert the tendency from the resulting vote count in the districts, encouraged mainly by the reduced margin by which they were down. Ramos argued that due to a large number of irregularities before, during and after the elections, they will try to annul some 250 votes from polling places where people could not vote, due to inconsistencies on the electoral register. Alejandro Bahena won by a margin of 118 votes, according to preliminary and final counts, making this, one of the closest elections in the history of the municipality of Mexicali. [It is interesting to note that although Mexicali went PAN it is said that San Felipe went PRI.]

Spanish:
Aparentemente, la paz volvió entre los partidos políticos desde las elecciones pasadas. Las autoridades electorales pusieron fin a la guerra de números y especulaciones que comenzaron casi inmediatamente despues que cerraron las casillas de votación el Domingo primero de Agosto. Con la conclusión de los resultados oficiales y la decisión del electorado-muy pocos los que salieron a votar por cierto-terminaron las movilizaciones con que seguidores del PRI y la coalición detrás de Samuel Ramos, intentaron revertir los resultados del cómputo final en los distritos, alentados por el reducido margen con el que perdieron. Ramos declaró que dadas las muchas irregularidades antes, durante y después de las elecciones, ellos tratarán de anular cerca de 250 votos de las casillas de votación donde alguna gente no pudo votar debido a inconsistencias en el padrón electoral. Alejandro Bahena ganó por un margen de 118 votos, de acuerdo al cómputo preliminar y final, haciendo con ésto, las elecciones más competidas en la historia del municipio de Mexicali. Submitted by J. Tapia

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7/23/04
S.F. POLICE ACADEMY GRADUATION: The San Felipe Rotary’s club house, served as the official hall where 12 cadets from the San Felipe Police Academy graduated this past Friday. See report and pictures here

**Clean Beaches!! The Cleanup -" Un Dia por San Felipe" campaign.

***The July 4th Holiday weekend Several thousand flyers were printed to pass out to visitors.

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6/15/04
Prescription drug laws in Mexico
We have cautioned in the past that the laws for purchase of prescription drugs at pharmacies in Mexico have been tightened significantly. These matters were discussed during the visit of the US Consul to San Felipe in February. The following news article in today's San Diego Union Tribune should give additional pause to people buying large quantities of drugs without the needed prescription from a Mexican doctor.

U.S. citizen loses bid to overturn controlled-substance conviction
By Sandra Dibble
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
TIJUANA – A U.S. citizen serving a five-year sentence for possessing controlled substances without a Mexican doctor's prescription has lost her last legal appeal, her attorneys said yesterday. Read the full story

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Repaving Highway 5

9/6/04

The highway from San Felipe to the first set of mountains is being widened and resurfaced this summer.The first section is underway. They started in San Felipe, tearing up a stretch at a time, and doing a good job. They would block off a section, one way. Then chop it up, regravel, and put on the new blacktop. On with the next section. Around the curve of the arches. On up the highway about 3 miles. They were doing a very timely job. Until today. Evidently one truck had a problem, and a second was too close. Both flipped over on their sides and spilled their loads. Now what are chances of that happening again. Within 4 hours they had both trucks righted, the mess cleaned up and everything went back to normal. Except I did get that picture! st

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Local Economic News

8/6/04:
Update. We just received our domestic electric bill. Surprisingly these are the summer rates shown.
Basic: first 300 kwh @ 0.394 or 118.20 pesos
Interim Rate: next 900 kwh @ 0.652 or $586.80 pesos
Highest Rate: our usage was 245 kwh @ 1.206 or $295.47 pesos
This totalled $1000.47 pesos plus tax of 100.04 pesos = 1100.51 pesos or $96.54 dollars
THEN: the Mexican government subsidizes domestic users, In our case $835.59 pesos or $73.30
Total due $264.92 pesos or $23.24 dollars.
Propane is now $35.00 for a 100 lb cylinder refill.
Drinking water (reverse osmosis - purified) is priced at 7.00 pesos per 5-gallon container or $.60 cents. We buy unpurified domestic and construction water by the truckload of 2000 gallons for $35.00 in town. For delivery out of the central area you may pay up to double this.
There has been a recent general rise in prices at local restaurants. A simple meal of fish tacos and a beer on the Malecon is now about $5, up nearly 20% in the past month. For a decent steak dinner with drinks, you need to allow $25-35 per person, again an increase close to 20%.

On 4/17/04 we reported that gasoline in San Felipe was presently running at the equivalent of $2/gallon for regular unleaded 87 octane fuel, and $2.41/gallon for 91 octane fuel. It is still about the same.