PUERTO VALLARTA: Rains and flooding along Mexico's Pacific Coast from Hurricane Simon and Tropical Storm Rachel have left five people dead, authorities said Monday.

The El Nino phenomenon, characterized by rising water temperatures in the Pacific, is fuelling a more intense hurricanes this season in the region.

Simon claimed the life of a 71-year-old man who "died when a wall collapsed in Chilpancingo" in the southern state of Guerrero, Governor Evelyn Salgado said during the daily presidential press conference.

Tropical Storm Rachel is blamed for the deaths of four members of one family, including two children, whose bodies were found on the outskirts of the city of Ensenada in Baja California, the state's prosecutor's office reported.