MEXICO: The death toll from Mexico’s torrential rains rose to 44 on Sunday, as the country grappled with widespread flooding and landslides. President Claudia Sheinbaum convened governors from the hardest-hit states to coordinate an emergency response plan.
Mexico’s National Coordination of Civil Protection reported that, as of Sunday, 18 people had died in the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz and 16 in Hidalgo, north of Mexico City.
At least nine fatalities were reported in Puebla, east of the capital, while a child in the central state of Querétaro died after being caught in a landslide.
The toll may still increase as rescue teams continued to search through villages buried in mud and debris.
In Veracruz and Puebla, hundreds of army personnel, police officers, and firefighters carried out rescue operations and set up temporary shelters offering food and medical assistance to displaced residents.
Thousands across the country remained without running water or electricity.
“We will not leave anyone helpless,” President Sheinbaum wrote on social media.
While visiting the storm-stricken Huauchinango municipality in Puebla on Sunday, Sheinbaum noted that improved weather conditions had finally allowed access to several isolated communities.
Officials have blamed the deadly downpours on Tropical Storm Priscilla, formerly a hurricane, and Tropical Storm Raymond, both situated off Mexico’s western coast.