NYT: At Least 46 Migrants Found Dead in San Antonio

[HCM]

Developing - no further info at this time.


https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/06...smid=url-share


At Least 46 Migrants Found Dead in San Antonio
All of the victims in what appeared to be one of the worst episodes of migrant death in recent years were believed to have crossed into the United States illegally and been brought north. A heat wave in Texas has brought record temperatures and drought.

SAN ANTONIO — The bodies of at least 46 people believed to be migrants who crossed into the United States from Mexico were found dead on Monday in and around a tractor-trailer that had been abandoned on the outskirts of San Antonio, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas said.

More than a dozen others were found alive and taken to local hospitals, according to two officials briefed on the police response, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details of what appeared to be one of the worst episodes of migrant death in the United States in recent years.

Officers from the San Antonio Police Department were searching for the driver of the vehicle, who appeared to have abandoned it sometime before it was discovered in a remote area near railroad tracks and auto salvage yards southwest of downtown, the people said.

State officials in Texas, already managing record levels of migrant crossings from Mexico, have been bracing for a new surge this spring and summer. All of the victims were believed to have crossed into the United States illegally and been brought north. The closest border crossing is roughly 140 miles away.

It was not immediately clear how the people had died, but San Antonio and other cities across Texas have been experiencing heat in June that is at or near record levels. The temperature on Monday in the city had topped 100 degrees.

A spokesman for the Texas State Police referred questions to the San Antonio Police Department, which did not respond to requests for comment. The Department of Homeland Security was expected to take over the investigation.

Ruby Chavez, 53, a housewife who lives about a mile away from where the truck was found, heard about the discovery on television, then saw a helicopter churning overhead. She came to the scene with her husband, Ruben, to pray.

The area was a location known to locals as a “drop-off spot” for migrants, the couple said.

“You can tell they just get here. We see them with backpacks or asking for food or money,” Ms. Chavez said. “It’s sad. And now I’m hearing there are kids.”

Her husband added: “They know this area. They jump off the train and get picked up.”

Dozens of police officers and fire officials massed around the scene along Quintana Road, where the truck was found, a road sandwiched between train tracks and auto salvage yards that has a rural feel despite being inside the city limits. Several farms are nearby.

Smugglers often transport large numbers of migrants in trailers, vans or S.U.V.s after meeting them in remote areas once they have managed to enter the United States. San Antonio is a major transit point for migrants making their way from Texas to points across the United States, and tens of thousands of migrants have passed through the city in recent months, according to immigrant advocates.

[HCM]

Update from NYT -

SAN ANTONIO — The bodies of at least 46 people believed to be migrants who crossed into the United States from Mexico were found dead on Monday in and around a tractor-trailer that had been abandoned on the outskirts of San Antonio, state and city officials said.

At least 16 others, including children, were taken to local hospitals alive but suffering from heat exhaustion and apparent dehydration, city officials said during a news conference at the scene of what appeared to be one of the worst episodes of migrant death in the United States in recent years.

“The plight of migrants seeking refuge is always a humanitarian crisis,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg of San Antonio told reporters late Monday. “But tonight we are dealing with a horrific human tragedy.”

The chief of the San Antonio Police Department, William McManus, said three people had been taken into custody. Earlier in the day, officers had been searching for the driver of the vehicle, who appeared to have abandoned the truck sometime before it was discovered in a remote area near railroad tracks and auto salvage yards southwest of downtown. Chief McManus did not say if the driver was among those detained.

State officials in Texas, already managing record levels of migrant crossings from Mexico, have been bracing for a new surge this spring and summer. All of the victims were believed to have crossed into the United States illegally and been brought north. The closest border crossing is roughly 140 miles away.

The truck was discovered by a worker from a nearby business who “heard a cry for help and came out to investigate,” said Chief McManus, adding that the worker had found the doors of the trailer partially open and found a number of bodies inside.

Most of the bodies, which included men and women, were found inside of the truck at around 6 p.m., though at least one was outside of the vehicle. The fire chief, Charles Hood, said the people who were transported to hospitals were “hot to the touch” and appeared to be suffering from “heat stroke, heat exhaustion.” The truck, though designed to be refrigerated, had “no visible, working A/C unit,” he said.

Officials did not say how the people had died, but suggested that the extreme heat had been a cause. San Antonio and other cities across Texas have been experiencing heat in June that is at or near record levels. The temperature on Monday in the city had topped 100 degrees.

[DDTSGM]

This is such a tragedy. Prayers for the survivors as well as those deceased.

[HCM]

Background from the daily wire on another human smuggling incident in San Antonio 24 hours prior.

https://www.dailywire.com/news/at-le...aign=dwtwitter

A spokesperson from San Antonio Police Department told The Daily Wire authorities will hold a press conference tonight on the critical incident. Authorities will live stream the event on the department’s Facebook page. The spokesperson did not have an exact time.
The incident comes approximately 24 hours after San Antonio police bust a human smuggling operation at a local home where 14 illegal immigrants were found ranging in ages from 19 to 33.
Authorities told local media officers received a call Sunday night regarding a person held inside the home at gunpoint.

It appears that they had been part of a potential human smuggling operation and the best we can determine; they had been there for perhaps a couple of days,” Eric Hightower, Deputy Chief, SAPD said according to News 4 San Antonio. “They had not been fed or cared for. They had not been given water or food or anything like that and they were obviously trying to get some help.”
According to local media, officers, who had also executed a search warrant on the home, say they were given medical care before being handed over to Homeland Security Investigations.

[Paul D]

That is gut wrenching. If we were to presume that the tractor trailer broke down: is there a severe penalty levied on the driver by his bosses if he let them loose OR are these drivers on average sociopathic monsters who can't be inconvenienced to open the trailer's doors.

[HCM]

That is gut wrenching. If we were to presume that the tractor trailer broke down: is there a severe penalty levied on the driver by his bosses if he let them loose OR are these drivers on average sociopathic monsters who can't be inconvenienced to open the trailer's doors.

To smugglers these people are a commodity. Nothing more.

Human Smuggling violations which result in death are a federal death penalty offense.

[willie]

That is gut wrenching. If we were to presume that the tractor trailer broke down: is there a severe penalty levied on the driver by his bosses if he let them loose OR are these drivers on average sociopathic monsters who can't be inconvenienced to open the trailer's doors.

They don't care. Nobody cares. The driver lost somebody's truck and trailer. He's a dead man.

[fixer]

Another situation where there is failure on so many fronts it is hard to fathom.

[Bart Carter]

Why isn't there a bigger outcry? Look at the riots created by fake crisis.

Loss of our border is a real crisis affecting millions of people. We are talking human trafficking, drug smuggling, loss of life, abandoned children, you know all the rest.

We were on our way to securing the border, despite purely political opposition. Those in the government that are responsible for this should be held accountable.

[HCM]

4 of those transported to the hospital died overnight bringing the death toll to 50.

K9 and aviation are searching the surrounding area for those who may have run off into the brush while in distress who may need medical care or have died.