water left following the rainfall caused concern of outbreaks of various diseases, including cholera. Consequently, the population was warned to boil or otherwise disinfect water to prevent disease. In areas where the storm's impact made it difficult to boil water due to the unavailability of gas or stoves, 70,000 jars with colloidal silver were distributed. Additionally, laboratory testing of refuse coming from individuals with gastrointestinary illnesses commenced as a precaution to identify outbreaks of cholera and other diseases, and over 82,000 vaccines were applied throughout the region. Following the storm's passage, PROFECO announced fines of up to $2.5 million (2010 MXN; US$191,000) to merchants guilty of price gouging when selling bottled water. This occurred after the agency received complaints of 1500% markups when compared to bottled water's pre-storm price. On July 7, the agency announced it had applied sanctions to 20 businesses who were found overcharging for bottled water. Economic and environmental effects According to estimates from the Mexican Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA), of farmland were damaged as a result from Alex in northeastern Mexico, corresponding to 11% of the total farmland in Tamaulipas, Nuevo León and Coahuila. Most of the agricultural damage occurred in Tamaulipas, where of sorghum and of maize were damaged, corresponding to 15.6% of the entirety of the state's farmland, and 76% of the state's maize crop; of grapefruit and limes were also damaged, corresponding to 15% of the state's citrus production. Two thousand heads of cattle were also lost in Nuevo Laredo. In Nuevo León and Coahuila, most of the damage was to animal husbandry; in Nuevo León, 3,645 heads of cattle, 3,580 goats, 7,265 sheep and 194 horses were lost, while in Coahuila, 3,709 goats, 258 cattle and 56 sheep were killed. The storm also affected commerce throughout the region. The Mexican Secretariat of Economy calculated that Alex affected 2,500 small and medium enterprises in Nuevo León, 500 in Tamaulipas, and 500–700 in Coahuila. In Monterrey, the local chapter of the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce reported that in the first two days after Hurricane Alex affected the city, businesses in the city lost $750 million (2010 MXN; US$58 million). Overall, the lost business due to Alex is expected to total about $2 billion (2010 MXN; US$156 million). As floodwaters receded from the Pesquería River in Escobedo, Nuevo León, the remnants of a 15,000-year-old mammoth were discovered