Mexican rescue workers continued the grim search Friday for people missing after strong storms triggered mudslides that engulfed parts of several towns and villages on both coasts.
People are searching the wreckage in La Pintada, west of the resort city of Acapulco, for 68 people missing since a landslide cascaded down a hill Wednesday, burying homes and schools in its path. The mayor of the local municipality told reporters at least 15 bodies have been pulled from the rubble.
Nearly 100 people have died in Mexico from the flooding and landslides triggered by Hurricane Ingrid on the Gulf Coast and Tropical Storm Manuel on the Pacific coast.
Authorities on Friday partially reopened landslide-damaged roads out of Acapulco, giving thousands of tourists stranded in the flooded resort city a new way out of the devastation.
The Mexican army and commercial airlines had managed to evacuate more than 5,000 of the 40,000 tourists left stranded in Acapulco before some of the streets reopened.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon extended condolences to the Mexican people and said the United Nations stands ready to help efforts to respond to humanitarian needs resulting from the disaster.
Storms Batter Mexico
1/13People swim in flood waters in Culiacan, Mexico, Sept. 19, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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2/13A view of houses destroyed after a mudslide in the village of La Pintada, in the Mexican state of Guerrero, Sept. 19, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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3/13People move furniture through a flooded street in Tixtla, Mexico, Sept. 19, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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4/13People wade through waist-high water in a store's parking, looking for valuables, south of Acapulco, in Punta Diamante, Mexico, Sept. 18, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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5/13A man uses a makeshift zip line to cross a river after a bridge collapsed under the force of the rains caused by Tropical Storm Manuel near the town of Petaquillas, Mexico, Sept. 18, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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6/13Cars are parked in a flooded lot of the airport in Acapulco, Sept. 18, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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7/13A woman carries a child while walking through a flooded neighborhood in Acapulco, Sept. 18, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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8/13People stand in a house flooded by mud after a mountain landslide in Altotonga in Veracruz state, along Mexico's Gulf coast, Sept. 16, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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9/13Soldiers search for survivors after a bus and two nearby houses were buried by a mountain landslide in Altotonga in Veracruz state, along Mexico's Gulf coast, Sept. 16, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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10/13A small chapel is engulfed in rock and mud from a landslide brought on by Tropical Storm Manuel's heavy rains on the outskirts of Acapulco, Mexico, Sept. 16, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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11/13In this photo released by Mexico's presidential press office, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto meets with people affected by Tropical Storm Manuel in the Pacific coast city of Acapulco, Mexico, Sept. 16, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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12/13People carry the belongings they were able to take after a landslide caused by heavy rains caused by Tropical Storm Manuel destroyed their homes in Chilpancingo, Guerrero state, Mexico, Sept. 16, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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13/13People look for bodies and salvage belongings after heavy rains triggered a landslide in a low income neighborhood in the city of Chilpancingo, Guerrero state, Mexico, Sept. 16, 2013.
Tropical Storm Manuel struck the Pacific coast on Sunday while Hurricane Ingrid made landfall Monday on the northeastern Gulf coast.
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