3 more bodies discovered in western Mexico

Workers found the bodies of three more drowning victims Monday in western Mexico, raising the death toll to 12 in river accident.

Photo: 3 more bodies discovered in western Mexico

A total of 25 adherents of the Universal Christian Church were immersed in the Cuixtla River Sunday morning when it rose suddenly and the swift current carried them downstream, said Oscar Gilberto Barragan, an official with the civil protection department for the western state of Jalisco.

Rescue workers have recovered 12 bodies and three others remain missing.

The victims were part of a group of 66 church members who were camping alongside the river in Rancho Ixcamilpa, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) northeast of the state capital of Guadalajara, according to a press release from the civil protection department.

Officials were still investigating what caused the sudden rise in the river. Barragan said one theory is that a dam upstream had been opened.