Santa Catarina River (Mexico)

The Santa Catarina River is a river and a State Protected Natural Area in Nuevo León, Mexico; a tributary of the San Juan River and the Rio Grande, it flows through the Monterrey metropolitan area.

History

The Santa Catarina River made the establishment of Monterrey and its metropolitan area possible and generated an economic system based on agriculture and livestock; on the other hand, it has also brought numerous floods. In 1596, the river was mentioned by Diego de Montemayor in the founding document of the capital of Nuevo León:
In July 2010, Hurricane Alex caused severe flooding, landslides, and damage to homes, bridges, roads, and other infrastructure. Constitución and Ignacio Morones Prieto avenues, which run alongside the river, had to be redesigned and rebuilt. The 2007 linear park disappeared completely, along with other sports facilities and the market under the Puente del Papa. After the hurricane, no more sports or commercial facilities were built on the riverbed, allowing the ecosystem to recover.