|
City Rep. Lilly Unresponsive to West Nile Virus Crisis.
With the recent announcement of Dr. Jorge Magaña’s resignation, much has been revealed about the lack of administrative leadership at the El Paso City/County Health Department. But what has yet to be made public is the negligence by City Officials that allowed Dr. Magaña to drop the ball... again, and again.
What has not been offered by City Representative Ann Lilly and what has not been widely heralded by the local media is that the investigation by UpperValleyBeacon.com concerning the failure of Dr. Magaña to prepare a plan and to implement that plan when dealing with the certainty that deadly viral infections are a way of life now in the Upper Valley and indeed all over El Paso County and Southern New Mexico. While recently photographing a football game at Coronado Stadium which is a good distance from the valley, a mosquito landed on my arm. Was our investigation the last straw that ended years of neglect by Dr. Magaña or are City officials just using the animal shelter issue to hide the truth.
Starting in May, UpperValleyBeacon.com identified numerous problems in the EPCCHD prior to and during the West Nile Virus outbreaks. City Representative Ann Lilly was kept abreast of the investigation; including the fact that complaints against the EPCCHD and Dr. Magaña with the Attorney General’s office were forthcoming.
Not only did Lilly not contact our office concerning the investigation, but, far worse, Lilly did not respond to the growing threat and allowed the entire region to come under massive mosquito infestation and the spread of West Nile Virus.
This is the same lack of responsiveness that former City Representative Susan Austin exhibited when the developers had exposed the Upper Valley to West Nile outbreaks by pumping ground water into a large man-made lake.
At the time, Austin swept the matter under the table but, the lawyer for the developers was identified at the lake site with a bag of goldfish. It was her belief that a dozen goldfish would eradicate the growing mosquito population of a 25-acre lake.
While it is unfortunate that Lilly has chosen to be so nonchalant about others lives; if Lilly knew that Dr. Magaña was on his way out and did not bring this matter to an alert level, then she is culpable. Lilly allowed hundreds of residents to become possibly infected with West Nile Virus or other nuerological viral infections carried by mosquitoes.
What UpperValleyBeacon.com revealed makes it clear that all of El Paso County was at risk. Unfortunately, there are many who did not survive the chaos.
The question posed to Dr. Magaña during the danger period was "How many deaths are too many". The same must be asked of Lilly.
Have the developers continued to control El Paso politics? Did we think that we were electing the "other" candidate? But didn't?
Again, Lilly’s inaction must be scrutinized under the light of recent developer influence in the Upper Valley... and the city.
A comprehensive plan must be initiated now to deal with West Nile 2007.
Lilly did not return our calls.
(Photos: Brax - Valley Publishing Company)
Send feedback to:
Editor, Upper Valley Beacon
Copyright © 2004-2006 Valley Publishing Company:
All Rights Reserved.
| 
