Last Updated on June 28, 2022
Over 40 illegal immigrants were found dead in the back of a truck trailer without air conditioning in San Antonio, not far from the southern border, officials say.
At least 46 illegals were found dead and 16 individuals, including children, are currently hospitalized, San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood said.
The discovery was made Monday evening in a rural area of Southwest San Antonio after someone reported hearing a cry for help, officials explained.
“We’re not supposed to open up a truck and see stacks of bodies in there,” the fire chief who opened the back of the trailer said.
“We’re not supposed to open up a truck and see stacks of bodies in there.” San Antonio Fire Department says 46 dead migrants found inside tractor-trailer were “hot to the touch,” rig had no working air conditioning.
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) June 28, 2022
The survivors suffered under severe conditions without water or air conditioning. “The patients that we saw were hot to the touch,” the police chief said.
Temperatures in the area reached 101 degrees, so officials suspect heat exhaustion was the main cause of death. Homeland Security has since taken over the investigation.
With the throng of people suffering together in the packed trailer, the temperature inside will have been significantly higher than the outside temps. A National Association of Medical Examiners committee recommends bodies with a temperature of 105 degrees or higher at the time of death should be considered heat-related deaths.
The truck was first found by Homeland Security Investigation agents, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said.
The truck discovery comes amidst a surge in illegal immigration across the Southern Border. In the month of May, illegal immigration levels reached an all-time high, with U.S. Customs and Border Protection making 239, 416 arrests along the border.
The agency is expected to make over 2 million arrests this fiscal year, crushing last year’s record-high of 1.73 million arrests.
In 2003, a similar tragedy occurred when truck driver Tyrone Williams agreed to smuggle illegals across a border checkpoint for $7,500 but forgot to turn on the air conditioning in the truck’s trailer.
Internal temperatures in the trailer reached a shocking 173 degrees and 19 illegal immigrants died.
“This is why we need to secure the border. It will save lives,” Conservative author Nick Adams said on Twitter.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott blamed Biden for the deaths. “These deaths are on Biden. They are a result of his deadly open border policies. They show the deadly consequences of his refusal to enforce the law,” he commented.
At Least 42 People Found Dead Inside Truck Carrying Migrants In Texas.
These deaths are on Biden.
They are a result of his deadly open border policies.
They show the deadly consequences of his refusal to enforce the law. https://t.co/8KG3iAwlEk
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) June 28, 2022
Stay tuned to National File for any updates.
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