At least 46 illegal immigrants have been found dead on Monday in an 8-wheeler truck in San Antonio, Texas.
“It’s tragic,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg said Monday. “There are, that we know of, 46 individuals who are no longer with us, who had families, who were likely trying to find a better life. And we have 16 folks who are fighting for their lives in the hospital.”
The migrants were in terrible condition, and those found alive were hot to the touch and suffering from heat stroke and exhaustion, said San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood at Monday night’s news conference.
Their discovery arrived as US federal authorities launched an “unprecedented” operation to disrupt human smuggling networks amid an influx of migrants at the US-Mexico border.
“An alleged human smuggling event” was alerted by San Antonio police to the US Department of Homeland Security’s investigation unit, which is leading the probe, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson said Monday.
The incident appears to be among the most deadly in recent years for migrants near the southern border.
The worker found a trailer with doors partially opened and saw people deceased inside, McManus said.
A total of 16 people including 12 adults and 4 children were taken to medical facilities, said San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood.
Three people who were taken to Methodist Hospital Metropolitan are in stable condition, a Methodist Healthcare spokesperson said.
“We hope those responsible for putting these people in such inhumane conditions are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” the mayor said.
“This is now a federal investigation,” McManus said. The police chief also said at least three people were in custody but did not specify if the individuals were suspects in the investigation.
“We’re not supposed to open up a truck and see stacks of bodies in there,” an official said.
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