Mexico Flooding Crisis: Death Toll Rises as Rescue Efforts Intensify
#mexico #floods #disaster_response #rescue_efforts #oil_residue
Death Toll Rises as Search Intensifies
The death toll from last week’s torrential rains across east-central Mexico has climbed to 64, with authorities expanding search operations to reach communities isolated by devastating landslides and flooding. Rescue teams, including thousands of troops and civilian volunteers, are working around the clock to locate at least 65 people still missing, as helicopters deliver vital supplies to more than 200 cut-off villages. The hardest-hit areas—Veracruz, Hidalgo, Puebla, and Querétaro—have seen entire neighborhoods submerged, roads washed away, and homes destroyed by the force of floodwaters.
Unprecedented Challenges and Response
In oil-rich regions like Poza Rica, residents face not only flood damage but also thick oil residue coating homes and streets, complicating cleanup and recovery efforts. Officials report that some 100,000 homes have been damaged, and emergency shelters are overflowing with displaced families. President Claudia Sheinbaum has pledged full government support, emphasizing that no resources will be spared during the emergency phase. The disaster, triggered by the remnants of Hurricane Pricilla and Tropical Storm Raymond, underscores Mexico’s vulnerability to extreme weather and the urgent need for resilient infrastructure in flood-prone areas.
About the People Mentioned
Claudia Sheinbaum
**Claudia Sheinbaum** is a Mexican politician, environmental engineer, and climate scientist who has served as the 66th President of Mexico since October 2024[2]. She is the first woman and first Jewish person to hold the office[2][3]. Born on June 24, 1962, in Mexico City, Sheinbaum comes from a family of scientists[1]. Her grandparents were Jewish immigrants from Lithuania and Bulgaria[1]. She earned a bachelor's degree in physics from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in 1989, followed by a master's degree in 1994 and a Ph.D. in energy engineering in 1995, also from UNAM[4]. During her doctoral research in the 1990s, she spent four years at the University of California, Berkeley, focusing on energy engineering[1]. Sheinbaum's political career began in 2000 when she was appointed environment secretary of Mexico City under then-mayor Andrés Manuel López Obrador[1]. She served as delegational chief (mayor) of Tlalpan, the largest borough in Mexico City, from 2015 to 2017[1]. In 2018, she became Head of Government of Mexico City, becoming the first elected female head of government and the first Jewish person to hold the position[2]. During her tenure as Mexico City's mayor until 2023, she focused on security, public transport, and social programs while managing major crises including the COVID-19 pandemic and the Mexico City Metro overpass collapse[2]. Sheinbaum's scientific contributions include membership in the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007[4]. She authored over 100 articles and two books on energy, the environment, and sustainable development[4]. In the 2024 presidential election, Sheinbaum won a landslide victory as the National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) candidate[2]. As president, she enacted constitutional reforms including enshrining social programs into the Constitution and reversing aspects of the 2013 energy reform to strengthen state control over the energy sector[2]. In 2025, Forbes ranked her as the fifth most powerful woman in the world[2].
