Filmed: At least 8 dead in stage collapse at Mexico campaign rally

A stage collapsed in Mexico on Wednesday as strong winds swept through a presidential candidate’s campaign rally, leaving at least eight people dead and around 50 injured.

Videos of the accident showed a crowd fleeing as the structure supporting the stage toppled and a giant screen fell onto the stage where presidential candidate Jorge Alvarez Maynez and members of his party were standing. party, the Citizen Movement.

“I have just visited Clinic 7 and I regret to inform you that to date, the number of people who died in the accident stands at 8 adults and 1 minor. The injured who are in this clinic are now stable,” wrote the governor of the state of Nuevo León, in the north of the country, Samuel Garcia, on the social network described the accident as a “tragedy”.

Maynez, 38, said he was safe after the accident in the town of San Pedro Garza Garcia, part of the greater metropolitan area of ​​the city of Monterrey, Nuevo León. “I am fine and in communication with authorities” about what happened, Maynez wrote on X, adding that the priority was taking care of the victims.

He said he would remain at the scene until the last injured person was taken to hospital. Some members of his team were being treated in hospital, according to Maynez, who according to polls is in third place ahead of the June 2 presidential election. In the polls, he is far behind favorite Claudia Sheinbaum and the main opposition presidential candidate, Xochitl Galvez. In a social media post, outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador extended his sympathies to the victims’ family members and friends. He said the election rally accident was caused by strong winds.

Maynez’s party said in a statement it would suspend all campaign events “in solidarity with those affected.” José Juan, who was present at the rally, recounted how the structure collapsed on the candidates and their supporters. head and I passed out. The rest was pure hysteria, pure panic,” he told the Televisa channel. The two other presidential candidates also expressed solidarity with those affected. “I hope with all my heart that “There are no serious injuries,” opposition candidate Galvez wrote on social media before the deaths were confirmed. On June 2, Mexicans will vote for a new president along with members of Congress , several state governors and local officials.