A Macabre Dejà Vu with the Flavor of Bullets and New Protocols
It seems that in Culiacán the phrase “going to the hospital” is acquiring a level of adrenaline that not even the most exaggerated action films would dare to propose. The brand new IMSS-Bienestar Hospital, the one that should smell like disinfectant and hope, today smells like gunpowder and newly released security protocols. The reason? A fun day of preventive confinement for all medical and administrative staff, while outside, visitors enjoyed a pleasant picnic in the parking lot, thanks to the lovely visit of the army and the National Guard.
It all started with an anonymous call to the emergency lines, reporting the presence of exemplary citizens carrying metal toys (meaning: armed men) in the Emergency Department. Immediately afterwards, the authorities, excited to be able to launch the new security protocols announced just 48 hours ago, decided that the best way to verify the rumor was… to lock all possible witnesses inside and leave the family members outside. A communication strategy, without a doubt.
Reality: Between the Absurdity and Past Tragedy
The funniest thing about this whole comedy of misunderstandings is that the only ones who seem not to have found out about the supposed shooting or the presence of these individuals were, precisely, the people who were inside. The testimonies of the visitors agree on one thing: they did not see anyone armed, they did not hear explosions. Nothing. Zero. Zip. No action. Only the hum of the fluorescent lights and the tension of a military operation that, so far, has not yielded a single detainee. A resounding success.
And if the script were not good enough, the situation is a hilarious echo of the tragedy that bloodied Culiacán at the end of August. It turns out that this same hospital was the scene a few days ago of the “finishing” of a patient in Intensive Care who was recovering from a projectile wound. Almost at the same time, in a private clinic downtown, another poor individual suffered the same fate at the hands of two guys with tactical vests. So, of course, who can blame the authorities for being a bit paranoid? It’s as if after your house burns down, you develop an irrational phobia of matches. Understandable, although a bit theatrical.
The jewel in the crown in this media candle was provided by official statements. On the one hand, the State Public Security Secretariat admitted that a suspicious person had been detected and that, following the new and brilliant protocols, they were proceeding to identify him and assess the potential risk. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health came out to say, with enviable calm, that they had no evidence of said suspicious presence, but that, oh well, just in case, they still closed everything and checked every last closet. Because better safe than sorry, especially when the headlines are staring at you.
So there you have it. A closed hospital, a search operation in progress, contradictory versions from the authorities and citizens who wonder if, the next time their tooth hurts, it won’t be safer to go to the dentist with a helmet and bulletproof vest. The violence in medical institutions in Sinaloa is no longer news, it is a genre in itself, a tragicomedy that is repeated with a rotating cast of armed characters and officials trying to decipher a security manual that clearly needs a second edition.
The final result? Zero arrests, zero weapons confiscated, and a exhaustive review that, as far as we know, only disrupted medical care and created more chaos. A normal day in the fight for security, where the only certainty is that absurdity continues to win by a landslide.
The moral? If you plan to visit a hospital in Culiacán, bring a book, a bottle of water and a lot, a lot of patience. And maybe pray that your medical emergency does not coincide with the next armed civilian alarm which, hopefully, will be another exercise in coordination between institutions. Have fun!
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