Ensenada, Baja California – The death toll from Hurricane Simon and the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel rose to six on Tuesday after torrential rains triggered severe flooding and landslides along Mexico’s Pacific coast, officials said.

Simon, a Category 1 hurricane that briefly neared major‑hurricane strength, dumped rain across Nayarit, Sinaloa and Guerrero. The worst loss of life occurred in Ensenada, where flooding linked to Rachel’s remnants claimed at least five victims, including a 13‑year‑old girl, two women aged 30 and 35, a 4‑year‑old boy and an unidentified person found near a stream.

Rescue operations and missing persons

Five people remain missing in Baja California, among them three residents of Ensenada and a father‑son duo who went fishing in San Felipe on the Gulf of California and never returned. About 300 military personnel, police officers and rescue workers combed the El Pípila stream, while the Mexican Navy continued its search for the missing fishermen.

Mexican soldiers also used helicopters to evacuate 32 people, including 13 minors, from Rancho Genesis, an orphanage run by missionaries. The army reported that 22 of those rescued were foreign nationals, among them Americans and Germans, according to Baja California Security Secretary Gen. Laureano Carrillo.

Impact across the region

In Guerrero, Simon’s rains toppled trees, snapped utility poles and flooded homes in coastal communities such as Acapulco, Governor Evelyn Salgado reported. A 71‑year‑old person died when a wall collapsed in the state capital, Chilpancingo.

Authorities in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, took preventive measures ahead of the storm, while conditions improved in the tourist hub of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, where residents began resuming normal activities as rain eased. Schools reopened Tuesday and airport operations gradually returned to normal.

Future storm outlook

The National Hurricane Center in Miami noted that Simon was about 125 miles west of Cabo Corrientes, Jalisco, with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph. Forecasts suggest the storm may strengthen overnight before weakening on Wednesday.

Additionally, Tropical Storm Trudy is expected to intensify rapidly, with the center predicting it could become a major hurricane by Friday in the Pacific Ocean, posing further risk to Mexico’s western coast.

Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.