130 People Died Or Missing Due To Floods And Landslides In Mexico

JAKARTA - Heavy rains that hit Mexico last week killed at least 64 people and 65 others, the government said on Monday, after tropical depression triggered landslides and floods in several Gulf Coast areas and states in the country's central region.

The unnamed depression comes near the end of the rainy season, hitting land and overflowing rivers that have been inundated by rain for months, while weather forecasters focus on tropical storms and two storms on the Pacific coast.

"This heavy rain is not expected to be this big," President Claudia Sheinbaum told reporters.

Meanwhile, Mexican Navy Minister Admiral Raymundo Morales said the flood was the result of a warm and cold air gathering over overflowing rivers and mountains that had weakened due to months of rain.

About 100,000 houses were affected, said President Sheinbaum. He is scheduled to meet with the Ministry of Finance to discuss rebuilding efforts, and visit some of the states most severely affected.

Laura Velazquez, national coordinator of civil protection, said Hidalgo and Veracruz were the worst-affected states, with 29 deaths and 18 missing persons reported in Veracruz, as well as 21 deaths and 43 missing in Hidalgo.

Rain also destroys infrastructure such as bridges and makes roads filled with mud. Videos and images from last week showed emergency response officers traversing deep waters to find displaced residents and send supplies to affected communities.

Authorities have deployed thousands of personnel to help evacuate, clean and monitor the most affected places.

Electricity, which was extinguished in cities in five states, has largely recovered. Authorities say they will also focus on overcoming the spread of the virus such as dengue fever, which is carried by mosquitoes that breed in inundated water.