Updated

Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 13

Rachel Floods Kill 4 in Ensenada as Hurricane Simon Batters Mexico With 155 kph Winds

Updated

Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 13

Rachel Floods Kill 4 in Ensenada as Hurricane Simon Batters Mexico With 155 kph Winds

Q: What harrowing conditions did the foreign missionaries face before their dramatic helicopter rescue from the isolated Ensenada ranch?

They were trapped by floodwaters after landslides and overflowing rivers cut off the Ensenada ranch from surrounding communities, leaving no safe road access and forcing an air rescue. Accounts from Ensenada describe the broader conditions as severe and fast-moving: heavy rain knocked out electricity, nearby streams overflowed, and water surged through neighborhoods with a roar “like ocean waves,” sweeping away vehicles and belongings. Authorities said similar flooding and mudslides isolated the ranch area, making ground evacuation impossible. The group rescued by Mexican military helicopters included 32 people, among them 22 foreigners, 13 youths, and missionaries from the United States and Germany who had been meeting at the ranch. Their ordeal unfolded amid a wider emergency in Baja California, where flash floods had already damaged homes, washed out roads and contributed to multiple deaths and missing persons. In short, before the helicopter rescue, the missionaries were stranded in a remote ranch cut off by storm-triggered floods, landslides and swollen rivers, with power disruptions and dangerous, rapidly rising water all around them.

3 articles · Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 13

Four bodies were recovered in Ensenada by Monday evening after post-tropical cyclone Rachel sent floodwaters through neighborhoods, sweeping away vehicles and damaging homes; six people were still missing.
32 people — including 22 foreigners and 13 youths — were airlifted from a ranch in Ensenada as landslides and overflowing rivers cut off several Baja California communities.
14,000 federal and state personnel were deployed across Baja California, while residents described overnight flooding that followed heavy rain and power outages.
155 kph Hurricane Simon stayed offshore Monday but lashed Mexico’s Pacific coast, knocking down trees and power poles, flooding homes in Guerrero and killing a 71-year-old man in Chilpancingo.
In the U.S. Southwest, Rachel’s remnants tied Las Vegas’ October daily rainfall record at 1.08 inches, though most flood advisories were lifted and lingering rain was expected to end by Wednesday.