STORY: ::May 23, 2024
::Video shows the aftermath of a stage collapse
in Mexico that killed nine at an election rally
::San Pedro Garza Garcia, Mexico
::High winds tore apart the structure,
scattering politicians and attendees
::Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador/Mexico President
"Many lost their lives and we hope the injured get well soon. Nine people, most of them women, died and there were many injured who were hospitalized last night and are receiving medical treatment. We send our condolences to the relatives of those who lost their lives, to Movimiento Ciudadano party, its leaders, its candidates, and its members. Yet, authorities still have to investigate."
Some 70 people were hospitalized after the rally for the Citizens' Movement party in the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon, Samuel Garcia, the state's governor, said on social media.
The victims were eight adults and one child, Garcia said, adding he was headed to a hospital where three people were in surgery. Many of the injured were being treated at local clinics, the director of Mexico's social security institute reported.
Jorge Alvarez Maynez, the presidential candidate for the centrist Citizens' Movement party, said a gust of wind caused the stage to collapse at the event in the city of San Pedro Garza Garcia, a wealthy enclave near the industrial hub of Monterrey.
