A stage in northern Mexico where a presidential candidate was campaigning for a local candidate collapsed after a gust of wind blew through Wednesday night, killing at least nine people and injuring at least 70 others, a state governor said.
The stage collapsed in San Pedro Garza García, a suburb of Monterrey, in the state of Nuevo León, during an event attended by the progressive candidate Jorge Álvarez Máynez and other members of the Citizens' Movement party. The collapse was caused by strong winds, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said means of social communication.
The wind suddenly picked up as candidates chanted election slogans on stage, videos posted on social media showed. When the stage light pylon crashed to the ground, people rushed off the stage to avoid being crushed. Others in the crowd ran away screaming, some holding onto each other in the strong wind.
Samuel García, governor of Nuevo León, announced the death toll and injuries to journalists last Thursday, saying in an interview with means of social communication that one of those killed was a child. Seventy were hospitalized with moderate to severe injuries She saidand 11 others had been discharged.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador expressed his support for the victims and the Citizens' Movement party during Thursday's morning press conference. “We send our condolences to the families of those who lost their lives, we are very sorry,” he said.
The stage, which had been erected on a baseball field, was the site of a campaign event for the candidate of the Citizens' Movement party in the elections for mayor of the city, Lorenia Canavati.
Mr. Álvarez Máynez, who was not injured, told reporters that he first noticed the strength of the wind when he saw it almost blow away the drums of the band that was supposed to play that evening. When the stage collapsed, he and others jumped off, he said.
“It is terrible that the people who came to enjoy a day of celebration, of joy, with us, with the gang, are now victims of this tragedy,” said Mr. Álvarez Máynez.
Mr. Álvarez Máynez said on social media who was communicating with state authorities to ascertain what had happened. Ms Canavati said her team was coordinating with the authorities to support the victims.
The party said it canceled all events its candidates had planned for Thursday after “hurricane-like winds” knocked down the stage.
The Mexican Weather Service said Wednesday evening that wind gusts of up to about 43 miles per hour were expected in the country's northeast and that tornadoes were possible in Nuevo León and nearby states.
Mr. García, governor of Nuevo León, said in a video message that people should take shelter from the storm.
“We are seeing electrical storms. Very strong winds and heavy rain are expected for the next two hours,” she said. “There has already been a tragedy.”
On June 2, people across Mexico will vote for the presidency and more than 20,000 seats at the local, state and congressional levels.
The Citizens' Movement, a center-left party founded in 1999, is represented in this year's general elections by Álvarez Máynez, who presented himself as a third party alternative to favorite Claudia Sheinbaum of the ruling Morena party coalition. and Xóchitl Gálvez of the opposition. One of them will succeed López Obrador, who will not be able to run again under the Constitution.
Several candidates have been killed during the current election season in Mexico, a country wracked by cartel violence. There were no reports of violence at the campaign event on Wednesday.
Victoria Kim AND Natalie Kitroeff contributed to the reporting.
