Mexico Tornado: Thirteen Dead in Ciudad Acuna

danielsan · #1 ● 05-26-2015, 12:14 AM

Footage shows the devastation in Ciudad Acuna

At least 13 people have been killed by a tornado that hit the northern Mexico border city of Ciudad Acuna.

Hundreds of homes have been damaged or destroyed in the city, in Coahuila state, just across the border from Del Rio, Texas.

The US state has seen severe flooding, with three killed and a dozen missing.

Images from Mexico showed cars and buildings badly damaged. Many people have been injured and there are fears the death toll could rise.

Coahuila Governor Ruben Moreira, on a visit to the stricken area, said 10 adults and three children had died and a baby was missing. Another 150 people had been taken to hospital, he said.

The missing baby had been strapped into the child-seat of a car, local media reported.

"Most of the dead are people who were outside, not people who were inside their homes," said Ciudad Acuna Mayor Evaristo Lenin Perez.

He added that it was the first tornado to hit Acuna since the city's foundation, more than 100 years ago.

Rescuers were searching the 750 damaged properties for more casualties.

"There are cars on top of houses, there are dead people lying in the street, it is total chaos," said local resident Maria del Rosario Ramirez, quoted by Mexican newspaper La Jornada.
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto expressed his "solidarity" with the relatives of the victims and said he would travel to Ciudad Acuna.

He said the government would "take stock of the damage and provide all appropriate support".

Victor Zamora, Coahuila's interior secretary, said an area of about seven blocks had been "devastated" by the tornado, which struck at about 06:10 (11:10 GMT).

Civil protection officials said that eight temporary shelters had been set up for those made homeless by the disaster.