UPDATE AT 8:15 a.m. Tuesday - The death toll has risen to 50, according to Mexican Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard.
Secretary Ebrard tweeted out early Tuesday morning that "the number of dead has risen to 50. Migrants include: *22 Mexicans *7 Guatemalans *2 Hondurans Remaining nationalities haven't been determined."
SAN ANTONIO - Forty-six people were found dead and 16 others were taken to hospitals after a tractor-trailer rig full of undocumented migrants was found Monday on a remote back road in southwest San Antonio. Police responded shortly before 7 p.m. to the 9600-block of Quintana Road near New Laredo Highway.
Per San Antonio officials, 46 people were found dead in the 18-wheeler and 16 (12 adults, 4 children) were transported to the hospital. San Antonio Fire Department Chief Charles Hood says there are no pediatric deaths to report.
“This is nothing short of a horrific human tragedy,” San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said at a news conference near the scene.
The people were suffering from heat stroke/exhaustion. Patients were hot to the touch, suffering from heat stroke, heat exhaustion.
“We’re not supposed to open a truck and see a stack of bodies in there,” said Chief Hood.
Hood said there no signs of water inside the truck, and while it was a refrigerated vehicle, “there was no visible working AC unit on that rig.” Those who were taken to the hospital were “too weak” to pull themselves out of the truck, Hood added.
"There are about 46 migrants dead in San Antonio. Our prayers raised up to you O Lord for their souls. Lord have mercy on them. They hoped for a better life," tweeted Archbishop Gustavo.
Many more have been transported to area hospitals. At least five victims are in critical condition at Baptist medical Center downtown, two more at Texas Vista Medical Center and an additional two at University Hospital.
Chief Hood said he was “very hopeful” that the 16 people who were transported to the hospital would survive.
Police vehicles, fire trucks and ambulances – as well as many yellow tarps – were seen around the truck. Yellow tarps are used to cover dead bodies.
This all started after a call came into 911 after a nearby worker heard cries for help. They opened the doors to the trailer and found several dead.
Those in the trailer were part of a presumed migrant smuggling attempt into the United States
At least three people are in custody. They have been turned over to Homeland Security investigations. It was unclear if they were absolutely connected with human trafficking, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said.
This investigation has now been taken over by federal agencies.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott blamed the deaths on President Biden, "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."
It may be the deadliest tragedy among thousands who have died attempting to cross the U.S. border from Mexico in recent decades. Ten migrants died in 2017 after being trapped inside a truck that was parked at a Walmart in San Antonio. In 2003, 19 migrants were found in a sweltering truck southeast of San Antonio.
Big rigs emerged as a popular smuggling method in the early 1990s amid a surge in U.S. border enforcement in San Diego and El Paso, Texas, which were then the busiest corridors for illegal crossings.
Before that, people paid small fees to mom-and-pop operators to get them across a largely unguarded border. As crossing became exponentially more difficult after the 2001 terror attacks in the U.S., migrants were led through more dangerous terrain and paid thousands of dollars more.
Heat poses a serious danger, particularly when temperatures can rise severely inside vehicles. Weather in the San Antonio area was mostly cloudy Monday, but temperatures approached 100 degrees.
"I urge you to think compassionately, pray for the deceased, the ailing, and their families at this moment," tweeted Nirenberg.
With a few days left in the month, June 2022 has already become the warmest June on record in San Antonio. The average number of days with temperatures of 100 degrees or higher in San Antonio is nine. This year, San Antonio has had 16 days with temperatures of 100 degrees or higher.