At least eight people are dead and two are still missing after a river flooded in the western Mexican state of Jalisco on Monday, local authorities said.
“So far, eight people have died and the search for two more continues,” the Jalisco Civil Protection Service said in a statement on Monday evening.
The lifeless bodies of some of the victims were found several kilometers downstream from where they disappeared.
“Heavy rain fell between five a.m. (11 a.m. GMT) and seven a.m.,” Juan Ignacio Arroyo Verastegui, the local civil protection director, previously told AFP.
The El Cangrejo River has overflowed its banks and flooded homes in the municipality of Autlan, home to around 60,000 people.
Particularly heavy rainfall fell over the San Juan Cacoma Mountains, causing El Cangrejo’s waters to quickly swell. The bodies of some victims were found more than six kilometers from where they disappeared.
According to Mr. Verastegui, deforestation and a fire last June in this forested mountain area may have contributed to the accumulation of rainwater.
Around a hundred rescuers are looking for the missing people.