At least 44 killed by floods, slides in parts of Mexico

Some people in the low-lying working-class neighborhoods of Poza Rica heard the wall of water before they saw it.

- BY FÉLIX MÁRQUEZ

The loudest sound was from the cars crashing together as they were swept along by the water that had escaped from the banks of the Cazones River and flooded the streets with more than 12 feet of water at dawn Friday.

By Saturday, much of the water had flowed away. What was left was pure destruction and the surreal scenes created when nature collides with the human-made: cars hanging from trees, a dead horse wedged inside the cabin of a pickup.

The death toll from Mexico’s torrential rains increased to 44 on Sunday as the fallout mounted from flooding and landslides across the country, prompting President Claudia Sheinbaum to convene governors from hard-hit states to direct an emergency response plan.