Rescuers scrambled on Monday to reach people cut off by devastating floods that have claimed 64 lives in central and eastern Mexico, with another 65 reported missing.

Torrential rains battered several Mexican states over several days last week, turning village streets into rivers, triggering landslides and sweeping away roads and bridges.

President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday around 10,000 troops have been deployed with boats, planes and helicopters as part of rescue efforts and to deliver critical food and water for those trapped.

Shelters have been opened for those displaced from their homes, and helicopters were flying to and fro to bring essentials to people cut off from the rest of the world.

"Many flights are needed... to deliver enough food and water," the president told reporters on Monday.

According to Laura Velazquez, the head of Mexico's civil defence authority, the states of Veracruz, Hidalgo and Puebla were hardest hit by flooding brought on by days of heavy rains.

In Hidalgo alone, 43 people were reported missing.

She updated the death toll that had stood at 47 just 12 hours earlier, indicative of the fast-unfolding scale of the disaster.

Mexico has been hit by particularly heavy rains this year, including a record for the capital Mexico City. (AFP)