Mudslide kills 14 in Eastern Mexico

The death toll from a mudslide in a mountainous area in the Mexican Gulf state of Veracruz has risen to 14, with eight children among the dead, emergency management officials said.

The mudslide occurred on Tuesday in Tecoa, a community outside the city of Coscomatepec, located nearly 300 kilometers (186 miles) from Mexico City, following heavy rains, Veracruz emergency management office spokesmen told Efe.

The first bodies found were those of a woman and her two children, an 8-month-old boy and an 8-year-old girl, emergency management officials said.

Five more bodies were found a few hours later by rescue teams digging through the mud and debris.

Rescue teams found six more bodies, including that of a newborn, in the evening, emergency management officials told Efe. Six of the victims have been identified, officials said.

Rescue teams found Pablo Torres Morales, 9, and Susana Trujillo, 21, alive, emergency management officials said. The boy and the young woman are expected to survive, officials said.

Mexican army units were deployed to the area to provide assistance and remove the tons of mud and rock.

Veracruz has been drenched by torrential rains that have caused flooding in the cities of Cordoba, Orizaba and Coscomatepec. At least 16 cities have been affected by the rains and floods caused as 15 rivers and streams overflowed their banks, the Veracruz emergency management office said.

Damage has been reported in 22 rural communities and 22 other areas, while more than 250 people have been evacuated from their homes and taken to shelters, officials said.

Thursday 12 September 2013

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