San Antonio cops find 53 migrants dead in ‘150F’ truck & rescue 16 others after chilling cry led to ‘STACKS of bodies’
AT least 53 migrants have been found dead in the back of a truck that reached an estimated 150F as cops discovered stacks of bodies following desperate cries for help.
Another 16 people - including four children - were rushed to a hospital in a critical condition following the horrifying discovery in San Antonio, Texas.
Officials announced on Wednesday that the death toll has risen to 53 people, which include 22 migrants from Mexico, seven from Guatemala and two from Honduras.
The migrant bodies were found inside an abandoned tractor-trailer, officials said. The victims include 39 men and 12 women.
The horror discovery was made after a worker heard a cry for help - leading to "" being found inside the vehicle, the San Antonio Police Department said.
San Antonio has recorded temperatures of 100F (37.8C) or more on 17 days this month.
Read More on Migrants
It's estimated that the temperature inside the vehicle was around 150F (65C).
Three suspects were taken into custody following the deadly discovery, but it is unclear if they are "absolutely connected to this or not,"; SAPD Chief William McManus said.
Police said they found 16 victims - 12 adults and four kids - conscious in the back of the truck and rushed them to local hospitals.
It's understood the survivors are "fighting for their lives" in hospital, suffering from severe heat stroke and exhaustion.
"The patients that we saw were hot to the touch... no signs of water in the vehicle or visible working AC inside," the city’s fire chief Charles Hood said.
"None of these people were able to extricate themselves out of the truck, so they were still in there awaiting help when we arrived. Too weak in state to actually get out and help themselves."
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the gruesome find was a "horrific human tragedy".
"There are, that we know of, 46 individuals who are no longer with us, who had families, who were likely trying to find a better life," he said.
He wrote: "I am heartbroken by the tragic loss of life today and am praying for those still fighting for their lives.
SAPD officers were searching the nearby surroundings for the truck's driver, who appeared to abandon the tractor-trailer before authorities located it, according to .
KSAT's shared an image showing San Antonio Fire Department's Mass Casualty Evacuation Ambulance nearby the semi-truck.
Border patrol officers arrived at the scene, which was located alongside railroad tracks, at around 8pm on Monday.
"We're just trying to collect as much information as possible and see how we can help the people who survived.
"I'm not really sure those people are going to need a place to sleep tonight, or what is going to happen. We're just trying to find out as much information as we can help them."
It is one of the deadliest incidents involving migrants attempting to cross into the US from Mexico in recent decades.
In 2017, 10 migrants died after being trapped inside a parked truck at a Walmart in San Antonio.
In a similar situation in 2003, 19 migrants were found in a heated truck southeast of San Antonio.
Some 557 people have died on the southwest border in the 12 months leading up to September 30 - more than double the 247 deaths reported last year.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Read More On The Sun
It's the highest figure since record-keeping began in 1998, according to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Texas governor Greg Abbott blamed the tragedy on the Biden administration, claiming "open borders" led to the horror event.