38 dead after hurricane-triggered landslides in Mexico

NEW YORK (AA) - The death toll in the aftermath of a dissipating hurricane on Sunday rose to 38 in Mexico, officials said, as another tropical storm formed off the country's Pacific coast.

At least 28 people died in south-central Puebla state, and 10 others were killed in the coastal state of Veracruz due to mudslides set off by heavy rain after Hurricane Earl, National Civil Protection Coordinator Luis Felipe Puente said on Twitter.

The continuing downpour prompted authorities to close down a section of the main federal highway linking Mexico city to the affected regions which received a month's worth of rain roughly within 24 hours, according to media reports.

Earl became a Category 1 hurricane for a short period before it struck Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, dumping rain and triggering landslides, the Associated Press reported.

Tropical Storm Javier formed off Mexico's Pacific Coast on Sunday, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.