Centuries-Old Mexican Colonial Ruins Damaged by Truck, Followed by Heavy Rain
A week after heavy rains prompted part of the centuries-old church's facade to collapse in the Yucatan Peninsula, the Mexican government stated Thursday that another incident damaged another colonial ruin located south of Mexico City.
Damaged Mexican Ruins
The incident happened after a driver of an overloaded truck had struck through a part of an archway of a centuries-old colonial aqueduct south of Mexico City. The recent incidents alarmed the Mexican governement regarding the country's colonial-era architecture.
According to ABC News, all of the incidents happened three weeks after the Mexican government sent in National Guards and police to end months of private construction that trashed pre-Hispanic archaeological sites in Teotihuacan. The truck incident started when a flat-bed truck that was carrying what appeared to be several giant sections of concrete storm drain tried to go under the arches of a colonial-era aqueduct in the Yautepec.
The stretch of the aqueduct, also known as the San Carlos arches, spans a section of a busy road, and traffic is required to slow down, check clearance, and pass beneath them. However, on Wednesday traffic failed to slow down and the drain pipe sections hit one part of the archway which sent part of the massive stone and brick structure tumbling to the ground.
The aqueduct was built during the colonial era to bring water to sugar mills that flourished in the area in the 1600s and 1700s.
Amusement Park Over Historical Sites
Meanwhile, on Friday, the National Institute of Anthropology and History reported that after four days of heavy rain, a portion of the facade of a colonial stone church on the Yucatan peninsula partially collapsed.
The said colonial church is the chapel of the Baby Jesus in the Maya town of Tihosuco. The stone church had been partially roofless for years after being damaged during the last Maya insurrection, also known as the War of the Castes, between 1847 and 1901.
The church was built starting in the 1500s, but it was not finished in its present form until 1839. The town of Tihosuco was important for Mayans as it was the scene where the fighting between Mayas happened. They were angered by excessive taxation and exploitation, and government troops that brutally put down the rebellion, the Associated Press reported.
But just like most modern societies, Mexico experienced a hard time co-existing with its wealth of historical architecture.
On May 31, the Mexican government sent 250 National Guard troops and 60 police officers to seize the land next to the pre-Hispanic ruins of Teotihuacán. Authorities stated that bulldozers used in the construction were destroying the outlying parts of the archeological site, KTIV reported.
The archaeological officials in the country had been trying since March to end the private construction project, despite the efforts work still continued. Based on local media, the private construction is the initial move for an amusement park that's going to be constructed.
Based on the estimation of the Culture Department, at least 25 ancient structures on the site were threatened to be damaged. The Department also stated that it has filed a criminal complaint against those responsible for the construction.
RELATED ARTICLE : Mexico Raids Building Project Close to Teotihuacán Pyramids, Archeological Site's Outlying Parts Damaged
WATCH: In Mexico colonial ruins shattered by truck rains -Vanguard News
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