At least seven people were killed in northeastern Mexico after the roof of a church came crashing down during a service, local officials have said.

"Seven people are confirmed dead, and 10 injured people have been rescued" in the coastal town of Ciudad Madero, a spokesperson for the Tamaulipas state government said in a statement on Sunday, adding that more people remained trapped.

Local media reported that at least 20 people were still missing under the rubble and that baptism was being celebrated when the ceiling collapsed.

The government statement said the incident occurred in the early afternoon.

In images broadcast on Milenio Television, dozens of people can be seen trying to hold up part of the collapsed structure with poles while others make their way through the wreckage in search of survivors.

"We are experiencing a very difficult moment ... the roof of a church has collapsed during the celebration of the Eucharist," the bishop of the local diocese Jose Armando Alvarez said in a video posted to social media.