At least 39 Central and South American migrants have died in a fire at a Mexican immigration detention center along the US border. It is said that the camp manager evacuated with the exit door closed at the time of the fire, causing more damage. The Mexican government announced that it would arrest eight people involved in the camp for murder and other charges.
According to the Associated Press, a fire broke out at around 9:30 pm on the 27th (local time) at the Ciudad Juárez immigration detention center in Chihuahua, northern Mexico, adjacent to El Paso, Texas, USA. At the time of the accident, 66 immigrants from Central and South America, including Guatemala, Honduras, Venezuela, El Salvador, Colombia and Ecuador, were being held in the camp. These were people who had come to the Mexican border to enter the United States illegally and were taken to prison camps. Some of them are said to have set fire to mattresses and other items, dissatisfied with being deported. In the accident, 39 people who were detained in the Immigration Office died, and the rest were seriously injured.
Closed-circuit (CC) TV footage from the camp shows camp workers leaving the site while migrants trapped inside iron bars kick the bars to get them out. Victims and bereaved families claim that the camp manager increased the damage by closing virtually the only exit.
A Venezuelan woman who said her husband was in the camp building told CNN, “I saw smoke everywhere and everyone got out, but[the camp]left the people trapped inside. “The staff did not open the door,” she said. “Her husband splashed water all over his body and survived, but suffered serious respiratory injuries,” she said. In particular, as it was revealed that a private company was partially responsible for the security of the immigration detention center, criticism of the Immigration Office’s irresponsible management is growing.
Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador said, “I watched CCTV and other related videos at the time.”
According to the Associated Press, the Mexican government is investigating camp officials on charges of murder and dereliction of duty. Mexican Security Minister Rosa Isela Rodriguez said that prosecutors had launched an investigation into two federal agents, one Immigration Agency employee and five private security agents, and that they would seek arrest warrants for them.
Ciudad Juárez, where the disaster occurred, is a border city where immigrants to the United States gather. Immigrants are flocking in anticipation that the Biden administration will ease the’Title 42’ policy, which allowed former US President Donald Trump to immediately deport illegal immigrants without screening under the pretext of preventing the spread of Corona 19, but the Biden administration is still pursuing this policy is maintaining
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.