46 migrants found dead in tractor-trailer in Texas

Washington (AFP) - At least 46 migrants were found dead Monday in and around a tractor-trailer that was abandoned on the roadside on the outskirts of the Texas city of San Antonio.

The grim discovery was one of the worst disasters involving migrants in the United States in recent years -- and came five years after a similar deadly incident in the same central Texas city, a few hours from the Mexican border.

"At this time we have processed approximately 46 bodies that have been triaged and tagged and declared deceased," San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood told reporters.

He said that 16 people had been transported to hospital alive and conscious -- 12 adults and four children.

There were no initial details on the age or nationality of the deceased.

"The patients that we saw were hot to the touch, they were suffering from heat stroke, heat exhaustion, no signs of water in the vehicle, it was a refrigerated tractor-trailer but there was no visible working A/C unit on that rig," Hood said.

Officials said three people were in custody over the incident.

"Tonight we are dealing with a horrific human tragedy," San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg told a press conference.

"So I would urge you all to think compassionately and pray for the deceased, the ailing, the families," he said.

"And we hope that those responsible for putting these people in such inhumane conditions are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law." 

San Antonio, which lies some 250 kilometers (150 miles) from the border, is a major transit route for people smugglers.

It has also been gripped by a record-breaking recent heat wave, and temperatures in the area hit 103 degrees Fahrenheit (39.5 Celsius) on Monday. 

The vehicle was found on a road near Highway I-35, a major US artery that stretches all the way to the border with Mexico.

A massive emergency operation was underway at the scene involving police, firefighters and ambulances.

According to San Antonio police chief William McManus, authorities were first alerted by an emergency call at about 5:50 pm.

"A worker who works in one of the buildings up here behind me heard a cry for help," he told reporters, "came out to investigate, found a trailer with the doors partially open, opened them up to take a look, and found a number of deceased individuals inside." 

He said the probe had been turned over to the federal Department of Homeland Security. 

- 'A better life' -

Texas Governor Greg Abbott hit, a Republican who advocates a tough line on immigration, hit out at President Joe Biden over the disaster -- blaming his "deadly open border policies."

"These deaths are on Biden," Abbott tweeted. "They show the deadly consequences of his refusal to enforce the law."

Mexico's foreign minister, Marcelo Ebrard, called the incident a "tragedy" and said the Mexican consul was headed to the site. 

Ebrard said the nationalities of the victims were not yet known, but that two Guatemalans were among the survivors.

San Antonio was the site of a similar migrant tragedy in 2017, when 10 people suffocated to death in a sweltering trailer with broken air conditioning and clogged ventilation holes as they traveled into the United States.

Dozens more had been hospitalized with heat stroke and dehydration -- with the truck believed to have been holding as many as 200 people, most of whom fled when it stopped in a parking lot. The truck driver later pleaded guilty to charges related to the deaths.

"Lord have mercy on them. They hoped for a better life," tweeted Gustavo Garcia-Siller, the archbishop of San Antonio, after news broke of Monday's awful discovery.

"Once again, the lack of courage to deal with immigration reform is killing and destroying lives."