Another Tragedy for Texas, Truck load of migrants die from the heat after being trapped in a truck

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#Texas, USA, June 30, 2022 – At least 62 people, including children, crossed the US-Mexico border in a truck on Monday, probably hoping for a better life, and while they made it into the country 46 of them died before the truck’s doors could open and five more died at hospital.  Local media are describing it as the deadliest human smuggling case in modern US history.

US authorities say it was heatstroke and dehydration, the people were in what was supposed to be a refrigerated truck not unlike the ones used to ferry fresh food to supermarkets, only there was no working air conditioning in the truck and when firefighters arrived on the scene they say there was no sign of water either.

San Antonio Firefighters were called when one person stumbled out of the truck and collapsed by the road.  Fire Chief Charles Hood described in a press conference what they found when the doors opened.

“The San Antonio Fire Department responded to a report of a dead person and found the trailer — with a body outside and several that they could visibly see inside once the doors were open.  We’re not supposed to open up a truck and see stacks of bodies in there.  None of us come to work imagining that.” he lamented.

Temperatures in San Antonio where the truck was discovered were as high as 37 degrees (Celcius).  When temperatures reach between 32° and 40° heat cramps and a little heat exhaustion starts to appear, between 40° and 50° heat exhaustion is apparent once the temperature goes past 54° then deadly heat strokes are likely.  Temperatures in cars can rise exponentially on hot days, dwarfing the temperatures outside.

A study from  Arizona State University found that cars can reach 71° in summer.   A surface that hot will give human third degree burns.  The study found that cars can hit that mark in under an hour. This usually only refers to parked cars since moving vehicles either have the windows down or the air conditioning on.  The truck carrying the migrants had neither.

Miraculously 16 survived initially, four of them being children, unfortunately later the public would learn, five of the survivors passed away at hospital.

“The patients that we saw were hot to the touch, they were suffering from heatstroke and heat exhaustion, no sign of water either,” said Hood.

The nationalities of several of the dead have been confirmed to be Honduran, Mexican and Guatemalan.

Three people are said to be in custody.