Culiacan, Mexico, Sep 20 (EFE).- A tropical depression has caused the most intense rains in the last 10 years in the western Mexican state of Sinaloa, resulting in flooding and at least one fatality, authorities told EFE.
Gov. Quirino Ordaz Coppel has requested the federal government to declare a disaster zone in the northern and central parts of the state, which allows funds to be used to face the situation.
Some 1,200 people in the municipality of Ahome have had to leave their homes and stay in shelters.
The Mexican army launched its emergency relief plan in the municipalities of Ahome, El Fuerte, Salvador Alvarado, Mocorito and Culiacan, the state capital.
In the central part of the state, first responders organized rescue teams in numerous towns and in the communities of El Limon and Los Ramos, which have been isolated by the flooding.
Classes were canceled at schools in Ahome, El Fuerte, Guasave and Salvador Alvarado.
The federal highway police closed circulation on highway 15, which connects Mazatlan to Culiacan, due to overflowing rivers.