US-Mexico Border Cause of Fire Revealed

A tragic dormitory fire has killed over three dozen people at an immigration detention center in northern Mexico near the U.S.-Mexico border. At least 40 people have been confirmed dead, with 29 injured as of late Tuesday.

The fire happened late Monday at the National Immigration Institute in Ciudad Juarez, just south of El Paso, Texas. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador revealed that the fire was started by migrants fearing being deported from Mexico.

Those injured were quickly taken to the hospital, and an investigation into the cause of the fire was quickly launched. Those injured were described to be in a "delicate or serious condition." The National Human Rights Commission was also alerted of the incident, according to USA Today.

Migrants From Central and South America Were Staying at the Institute Before the Fire

The National Immigration Institute in Ciudad Juarez housed around 68 men from various countries in South and Central America. They were staying there as they awaited being processed into the United States. However, some of the migrants learned that Mexico was deporting them and protested by burning the mattresses.

"They never imagined that this would cause this terrible misfortune," said AMLO.

According to the Associated Press, immigration authorities have identified those who died as migrants from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador. Guatemala's Minister of Foreign Affairs confirmed that 28 of those who died were their citizens.

For now, the Mexican government has been forced to rent refrigerated trailers to hold the migrants' bodies. It was a scene of utter horror, as survivors saw a lot of bodies strewn near the area.

On Tuesday, around 100 migrants gathered outside the burned facility to demand any information about their relatives, many wanting to know if loved ones died in the fire. Many did not get their answers as several of them were detained, including the children they were traveling with. The women and children were taken to a nearby immigration facility while the men were placed in cells. They were all soon released.

Reports indicated that there had been tensions between migrants and authorities during the past few weeks as the shelters in Ciudad Juarez have been full due to the sheer number of people awaiting opportunities to cross the U.S.-Mexico border or are waiting for their cases for asylum to be heard.

Eyewitnesses Describe the Horror of the Mexico Border Immigrant Center Fire

Several eyewitnesses and survivors have spoken to various media outlets about the fire, including 31-year-old Viangly Infante, a Venezuelan woman whose husband was trapped inside the building.

According to CNN, she and the others saw smoke billowing, but they left the men still locked inside the facility after they were removed from the area. She said the door was never opened. Her husband, 27-year-old Eduard Caraballo, survived but was taken to the hospital with breathing problems.

Photos have shown ambulances, firefighters, Mexican soldiers, and vans from the morgue arriving at the scene to help migrants as survivors were carried on stretchers into ambulances and also wrapped in silver insulating sheets.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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