At least 41 people have died in central and southeastern Mexico after days of heavy rain caused flooding and landslides, authorities said Saturday.
The death toll rose as thousands of soldiers sifted through the destruction left in the wake of the receding waters and cleared roads blocked by trees and cars to rescue the missing.
In Poza Rica, an oil town 170 miles (270 kilometers) northeast of Mexico City, residents told The Associated Press they heard the wall of water and the sound of cars crashing into each other before seeing the streets flooded with more than 10 feet (3 meters) of water on Friday.
Not everyone was able to evacuate in time.
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Neighbors gather around a damaged house after heavy rain in Poza Rica, Veracruz state, Mexico, Saturday, October 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
Shadack Azuara, 27, said he went to his uncle’s house at 3 a.m. Friday before the floods, but no one answered when he knocked. When he returned Saturday, he found his uncle shirtless and face down in the murky water surrounding his bed, apparently drowned.
“We thought he was gone, that he had been evacuated, along with everyone else who left,” Azuara said.
A woman walks through a damaged bus station after heavy rain in Poza Rica, Veracruz state, Mexico, Saturday, October 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
Heavy rains killed 16 people in Hidalgo state, north of Mexico City, and cut power to 150 communities, Mexico’s National Coordination of Civil Protection said on Saturday.
Neighbors walk past the damaged bus station after heavy rain in Poza Rica, Veracruz state, Mexico, Saturday, October 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
At least nine people were killed and more than 16,000 homes were damaged or destroyed in Puebla state, east of Mexico City.
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Fifteen people were also killed in Veracruz state, where the army and navy carried out rescue operations for residents of dozens of communities isolated after landslides and swollen streams blocked roads.
People loot a supermarket damaged by heavy rain in Poza Rica, Veracruz state, Mexico, Saturday, October 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)
Authorities said they were searching for 27 missing people across the region, and 16,000 homes in the Gulf coast state’s 55 municipalities were damaged.
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Earlier, a child died after being caught in a landslide in the central state of Querétaro.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
