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San Antonio (United States) (AFP) – A total of 46 migrants were found dead Monday, most of them located inside an abandoned truck on the side of a highway in San Antonio, Texas, authorities said.
The macabre discovery is one of the worst tragedies involving migrants in the United States in recent years, and comes five years after a deadly incident with similar characteristics that occurred in the same central Texas city, a few hours from the border. with Mexico.
“Right now we’ve processed 46 bodies,” San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood told reporters.
It indicated that 16 people – 12 adults and four children – had been taken to the hospital alive and conscious.
“The patients we saw were hot to the touch, suffering from heatstroke, heat exhaustion, and no sign of water in the vehicle. It was a refrigerated truck, but there was no evidence of a working air conditioning unit,” he added.
“Tonight we are dealing with a horrible human tragedy,” San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said at a news conference.
“I urge you all to think compassionately and to pray for the dead, the injured and the families,” he asked.
“We hope that those responsible for putting these people in such inhumane conditions will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
San Antonio, located about 250 km from the border, is a main route for smugglers.
The city has also been hit by a recent record heat wave that saw temperatures of 39.5C on Monday.
The vehicle was found on a road near the I-35 freeway, a route that goes directly to the border with Mexico.
A massive emergency operation was deployed to the scene involving police, firefighters and ambulances.
According to San Antonio Police Chief William McManus, authorities were first alerted at 5:50 p.m. local time.
“An employee in one of the buildings behind me heard a cry for help,” he told reporters. “I went to investigate, found the container with the doors partially open, opened it up and took a look, finding several deceased individuals.”
The officer said three people were arrested, but said he didn’t know “whether they’re absolutely connected to this or not.” He also added that the investigation has been moved to the federal Department of Homeland Security.
‘A better life’
About 60 firefighters have been deployed to deal with the remains and will receive psychological support, confirmed their chief Charles Hood. “You’re not supposed to open up a truck and find piles of bodies there,” he explained of the trauma his men are dealing with.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican who advocates a hard line on immigration, has launched a harsh attack on President Joe Biden, blaming his “deadly open border policies.”
“These deaths weigh heavily on Biden,” Abbott wrote on Twitter.
“They show the deadly consequences of their refusal to toughen the law.”
Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard called the incident a “tragedy” and said the Mexican consul was on his way to the scene.
Ebrard said the nationalities of the victims were still unknown, but that the survivors included two Guatemalans.
Trucks like the one found in San Antonio are a means of transportation widely used by migrants seeking to enter the United States.
The journey is extremely dangerous, especially since vehicles of this type do not usually have ventilation or cooling systems.
“The Lord have mercy on them. They expected a better life,” Gustavo Garcia-Siller, Archbishop of San Antonio, wrote on Twitter after the news broke.
“Once again, the lack of courage to deal with immigration reform is killing and destroying lives.”
a repeated tragedy
San Antonio was the epicenter of a similar tragedy in 2017, when 10 people suffocated in a container traveling to the United States with damaged air conditioning and clogged vents.
Dozens were hospitalized for heat stroke and dehydration, although the truck was believed to be carrying up to 200 people, most of whom fled when the vehicle stopped in a parking lot.
The truck driver, who claimed to be unaware that he was transporting some 100 people in his truck, was sentenced in April 2018 to life in prison without the option of parole.
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