At least 44 people dead after torrential rains in Mexico

At least 44 people were killed in Mexico after days of heavy rains and flooding, the government said on Sunday.

Torrential rains from tropical storms Priscilla and Raymond triggered landslides and flooding across five states.

There were 18 people killed in Veracruz state, 16 in Hidalgo, nine in Puebla and one in Queretaro, a government statement said.

The government of President Claudia Sheinbaum was managing a response plan to support 139 affected towns.

Photos posted by the Mexican military showed people being evacuated by soldiers using life rafts, homes that were flooded with mud and rescue workers trudging through waist-height waters through town streets.

“We continue with attention to the emergency in Veracruz, Hidalgo, Puebla, Queretaro, and San Luis Potosí, in coordination with the governor and the governors, as well as various federal authorities. The National Emergency Committee is in permanent session,” Sheinbaum said on X.

Mexico’s civil defense authorities reported intense rainfall in 31 of 32 states, causing rivers to overflow, flooding entire villages, triggering landslides and collapsing roads and bridges.

The central state of Hidalgo has been among the worst-affected areas, with authorities there reporting at least 22 dead, 1,000 homes damaged and 90 communities inaccessible to rescuers, the federal security secretariat said.

It said that neighboring Puebla state had at least nine dead.

Around 80,000 people have been affected by the extreme weather in Puebla alone, the state government said.

Floods have killed five people in the eastern state of Veracruz and one in Queretaro state, in central Mexico, officials said.

“We are deploying members and teams from the Mexican government to open roads and assist communities,” wrote President Claudia Sheinbaum on X.
She added that thousands of troops as well as boats, planes and helicopters have been deployed to assist the rescue efforts.

The military will help distribute aid in affected areas, with more than 10,000 troops deployed, along with rescue equipment and vehicles.
Shelters were open for those displaced from their homes.

The main disaster area has been Sierra Madre Oriental, a mountain range that runs parallel to the Gulf of Mexico coast.

It is dotted by small communities, many of which were blocked off on Friday.