Image: HERIKA MARTINEZ (AFP)
According to official figures, the fire killed at least 39 people and injured 29 others. This was announced by the Mexican Immigration Service (INM) on Tuesday. All victims are migrants. The cause of the fire initially remained open. The facility is located in Ciudad Juarez, a border town across from El Paso, Texas.
According to the INM, 68 adult men from Central and South America were staying in the accommodation at the time of the accident. According to media reports, the migrants had been picked up at various border crossings in Ciudad Juárez the day before. They had been taken to the migrants’ shelter to later be deported to their home countries.
Mexico is on the migratory route of people trying to reach the US. They are fleeing poverty, violence and political crises in their home countries. Between October 2021 and October 2022, the US Border Protection Agency registered more than two million attempts by migrants to enter the United States. In addition to migrants from Central America, more and more people from Venezuela, Haiti and Cuba are making their way.
Source: Nachrichten
