1 of 2 | The roof of the Iglesia Santa Cruz Church in the city of Madero, Tamaulipas, collapsed Sunday afternoon, killing at least nine people. Photo courtesy of Secretary of Public Security Tamaulipas/Facebook
The roof of a Mexican Catholic church collapsed, killing at least nine people and injuring 40 others, officials and authorities said late Sunday.
The incident at the Iglesia Santa Cruz Church in the city of Madero, Tamaulipas, which is located along the central Gulf coast of Mexico, occurred shortly before 2:20 p.m. Sunday, the state government said in a statement. Advertisement
Officials had originally released a casualty toll of seven dead and 10 injured but increased those figures in a statement issued shortly before midnight Sunday amid ongoing rescue work.
A list of the victims released by the city of Madero states that ages ranged from 4 months to 76 years old. Their conditions were unknown.
The Tamaulipas security spokesperson said on Facebook that canine units of the Red Cross have been deployed to scour the building as part of search-and-rescue efforts to find survivors buried under the church’s rubble.
“I deeply regret what happened in the church of Santa Cruz in Cd. Madero,” Tamaulipas Gov. Americo Villarreal said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Villarreal’s office late Sunday published photos of the governor at the scene of the incident, stating he was supervising rescue work. Advertisement
Jose Armando Alvarez Cano, bishop of the local diocese, said in a statement that the roof collapsed during a baptism. City officials estimate that approximately 100 people were in attendance and that at least 30 of them became trapped, prompting first responders to be deployed.
“With hope we share that from below the rubble, thanks to divine providence and the work of rescue forces, people have come out alive!” the local diocese said in a statement on Facebook.
