The believers were celebrating communion in a church in Mexico when the roof suddenly collapsed on them. At least nine people died. The reason was apparently a structural failure.
According to authorities, at least nine people were killed when a church roof collapsed during a mass in northern Mexico. Around 50 others were injured, the Tamaulipas state security agency said. She cited a “failure of the building’s supporting structure” as a possible cause of the accident.
About 100 believers were in church
According to Tamaulipas State Police, about 100 people were inside the Santa Cruz church on Sunday when the roof collapsed. Around 30 worshipers were trapped by rubble. Emergency services searched for victims and survivors late into the night, and sniffer dogs were later called in. The dogs initially did not detect any signs of life from survivors, said employees of the state civil protection authority.
Rescue workers call into rubble
Therefore, an older method that had already been used in previous earthquakes was used: rescue workers were sent into the piles of rubble to call inside and listen for possible reactions.
The helpers initially tried to lift parts of the roof that were hanging closer to the ground in the center of the church with a crane, as a video published by the state civil defense showed. However, the authorities ultimately decided not to do so because of the risk that chunks could fall from the crumbling roof slab and endanger possible survivors. In addition to the civil protection authority and the state police, units of the National Guard and auxiliary staff from the Red Cross were also involved in the operation.
Hope for survivors
Bishop José Armando Alvarez called on residents to bring wooden blocks to the church. The beams were apparently intended to support the roof while rescue teams advanced into the pile of rubble. Local media published photos showing a concrete and brick building with sections of roof hanging down and almost touching the ground. The roof was apparently relatively thinly concreted. In other images released by state authorities, a roof panel could be seen resting on church pews in some places in the building. This gave emergency services hope that possible survivors could have room to breathe.