Mexico stage collapse
(Photo : JULIO CESAR AGUILAR/AFP via Getty Images)
Forensic personnel move a body after a stage collapsed during a campaign rally for Mexican presidential candidate Jorge Alvarez Maynez in San Pedro Garza Garcia, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, on May 22, 2024.

Nine people including a child are dead after a stage collapsed at a political rally in Mexico.

It happened Wednesday night in northern Mexico where a presidential hopeful was campaigning for a local candidate.

  Máynez wrote on his social media accounts that he went to a hospital and was OK. "The only important thing at this point is to care for the victims of the accident," he wrote on X. Videos posted on social media showed people screaming, running away and climbing out from under metal polls.

Mexican President Andres Manuel said a strong wind collapse caused the collapse.

In a message on X he said he "sends a hug to family members, friends of the victims and political supporters."

 

Samuel García, the governor of Nuevo León, reported on X that 8 adults and a child were dead and 63 were injured. Three of them were in surgery.

The victims "will not be alone in this tragedy," Máynez told reporters Wednesday night. He has temporarily suspended campaign events.

The elections are scheduled for June 2 and candidates have been holding many events leading up to the vote.

There has been widespread violence targeting candidates. About two dozen candidates for local offices have been killed, the Associated Press reported.