SAN ANTONIO - Authorities on Tuesday were continuing to investigate one of the deadliest tragedies involving migrants smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border after 46 people were found dead in an abandoned tractor-trailer on a remote back road in San Antonio.Sixteen people were hospitalized, including four children, with heat-related illnesses, according to San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood.
The patients were hot to the touch and dehydrated, and no water was found in the trailer.A city worker heard a cry for help from the truck shortly before 6 p.m.
Monday and discovered the gruesome scene, Police Chief William McManus said. Hours later, body bags lay spread on the ground near the trailer as a grim symbol of the human tragedy.San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the 46 who died had "families who were likely trying to find a better life.""This is nothing short of a horrific human tragedy," Nirenberg said.SAN ANTONIO, TX - JUNE 27: In this aerial view, members of law enforcement investigate a tractor-trailer on June 27, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Jordan Vonderhaar/Getty Images) It’s among the deadliest tragedies to have claimed thousands of lives of people attempting to cross the U.S.
border from Mexico in recent decades. Ten migrants died in 2017 after being trapped inside a truck that was parked at a Walmart in San Antonio.