The life-size statue of Chapala’s patron saint San Francisco de Asís was hustled off to Guadalajara early Wednesday, October 5 for an emergency restoration procedure to repair a severe head injury and the amputation of several fingers.
The antique figure was damaged when it took a header off the platform used to carry it in the procession held the previous evening. The incident occurred at the end of the big parade along Avenida Madero, just as the team of porters who were hoisting the platform ascended the church steps for the celebration of Mass.
The Tercera Orden Franciscano donated the image to the church in 1908. Over the past five years it become customary to remove it from its niche inside the parish on the final day of the town’s fiestas patronales. A miniature model is used for the daily processions on other dates during the nine-day celebration.