At least nine people are killed when stage collapses due to strong winds at Mexican presidential election rally

Has been updated: 34 A few minutes ago release date: Five by the time

SAN PEDRO GARZA GARCIA, Mexico — At least nine people, including a child, were killed and 121 injured when strong winds collapsed a stage at a campaign rally in northern Mexico, the governor of Nuevo Leon state said Thursday.

The collapse occurred during an event Wednesday night attended by Jorge Alvarez Maínez, the presidential candidate who suffered a major defeat in the election, as he tried to flee. Videos of the collapse posted on social media showed people screaming, running and crawling out from under the metal poles.

Mynes told reporters on Wednesday night that the victims “will not suffer this tragedy alone,” adding that he would suspend future election campaign activities.

Soldiers, police and other officials walked around the park grounds where the incident occurred afterwards, leaving many nearby people in shock and troubled by the tragedy.

Nuevo Leon state Gov. Samuel Garcia, a leading member of Mines' Citizen Movement party, said in a video message that 94 of the injured had been treated and released, but 27 remained hospitalized. State health officials said many of the injuries involved skull fractures. Garcia said three victims had undergone surgery and were considered in serious condition.

Garcia said the accident happened “within a matter of seconds.”

Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador said the majority of those injured were women. He absolved Mr. Maynez's Civic Movement party, widely seen as a tacit ally of Mr. López Obrador's Morena party, of responsibility even before the investigation took place.

“I know they're not to blame,” the president said Thursday.

Condolences poured in from across Mexico, including from the other two presidential candidates.

Maynez wrote on his social media accounts that he went to the hospital after the accident in San Pedro Garza Garcia, a wealthy suburb near the city of Monterrey. He is said to be in good physical condition.

“The only important thing at this time is to take care of the accident victims,” ​​he wrote.

Footage of the incident showed Mynes waving his arms as the crowd chanted his name, but then he looked up and saw a huge screen and metal structure falling towards him. He rushed to the back of the stage to avoid the falling structure, which appeared to consist of relatively light framework pieces and what appeared to be a screen displaying the party's logo and theater-style lighting.

Mines is running third in the presidential polls behind the ruling Morena party's front-runner Claudia Sheinbaum and opposition coalition candidate Xocitr Gálvez. Both candidates expressed condolences, with Sheinbaum cancelling a campaign event near Monterrey the next day “in solidarity” with the victims and their loved ones.

“My condolences and prayers go to the families of those who lost their lives and I pray for a speedy recovery for those who were injured,” Galvez wrote in a social media post.

The accident occurred in the midst of election season, with many events taking place this week and next in anticipation of the June 2 presidential, state and municipal elections.

The campaign has so far been hit by the killings of around 20 candidates in local elections.