Heavy rain causes chaos in the north of the country, with the risk of storms set to persist.

A trough of low pressure lying north-south through Mexico, and a cold weather front moving southwards across the United States, coincided to bring the severe weather conditions.

Tampico, a port city in the state of Tamaulipas, some 10km inland of the Gulf of Mexico, received 129mm of rain during the day. This compares with average monthly rainfall of around 40mm.

Drains were unable to cope with the sudden downpour and photographs from the scene show a collapsed wall and vehicles struggling to make headway against the rising waters in the city’s streets.

The risk of storms is expected to continue, moving slowly northwards across the border with the US, into the state of Texas.

Linked to the same weather system, storms are also expected to develop in southern parts of New Mexico and Arizona in the coming days.