The truck was parked on a back road outside San Antonio. Source: KSAT.
51 people including five children are now confirmed dead after a truck carrying a trailer of suspected migrants was discovered in San Antonio, Texas.
A local worker made the grim discovery yesterday evening after hearing “cries for help” coming from inside the trailer that was parked next to train tracks. He made a call to emergency services after finding a bodies throughout and beside the vehicle.
Inside were the bodies of 46 migrants believed to be smuggled in from Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras according to Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard.
16 people were taken to hospital but five have since passed away, taking the death toll to 51 with 39 men and 12 women dead.
A Honduran man confirmed the death of his two daughters, Griselda and Carla but did not reveal their ages according to investigative reporter Aura Bogado.
Authorities believe the migrants succumbed to heat stroke, dehydration, and exhaustion after recent sweltering weather in San Antonio which saw temperatures rise to 39 degrees.
The bodies of the survivors were “hot to the touch” and they were too weak to move after the trailer’s air conditioning was found not to be working and there was no access to water said San Antonio Fire Department Chief Charles Hood.
Three people have since been arrested in relation to the incident but police can’t be certain they are connected.
US President Joe Biden called the tragedy “horrifying and heartbreaking” saying that the suspected human traffickers “have no regard for the lives they endanger and exploit to make a profit”.
It’s believed to be the deadliest human trafficking incident in the US.
The truck used to transport the migrants is believed to be illegally listed, falsifying registration under the Texas Department of Transportation to make it appear the truck belonged to a person in another part of the state.
The original truck was being used to for grain transportation and the owners deny any involvement in the smuggling.
