Dozens killed in fire at Mexico-US border migrant centre

A fire at a migrant facility close to the US border has killed at least 39 people.

Police officers carry an injured migrant following a fire that killed dozens of migrants, in the immigration station in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state on March 28, 2023, where at least 39 people were killed and dozens injured after a fire at the immigration station. (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP)

At least 39 migrants died in a fire that broke out at an immigration detention centre in a Mexican city on the US border, the Mexican government said on Tuesday.

The fire broke out shortly before midnight at the National Migration Institute (INM) facility in Ciudad Juarez, prompting the mobilisation of firefighters and dozens of ambulances.

An AFP journalist saw forensic personnel remove a dozen bodies from the INM’s parking lot, where several other bodies were laid and covered with blankets.

“The National Migration Institute of the Interior Ministry regrets the deaths — so far — of 39 foreign migrants, caused by a fire,” an INM statement said.

Vinagly , a Venezuelan migrant, cries next to an ambulance in which her husband, who was injured in a fire, is being transported following a fire at the immigration station in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state on March 28, 2023, where at least 39 people were killed and dozens injured after a fire at the immigration station. (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP)

A rescuer, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said there were about 70 migrants, mostly Venezuelans, at the centre.

Numerous migrants have been detained in the centre in recent days after local authorities rounded up street vendors, some of whom were foreigners, from the area.

A Venezuelan woman who gave her name as Vinagly stood outside the immigration centre, desperate for information about her 27-year-old husband who had been detained there.

“He was taken away in an ambulance,” she told AFP, adding that her husband had documents allowing him to remain in Mexico.

Police officers carry an injured migrant. (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP)

“They (immigration officials) don’t tell you anything. A family member can die and they don’t tell you he’s dead,” Vinagly said, her voice cracking.

A heavy military and national guard presence blanketed the site early on Tuesday.

Paramedics carry an injured migrant following a fire that killed dozens of migrants, in the immigration station in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state on March 28, 2023, where at least 39 people were killed and dozens injured after a fire at the immigration station. (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP)

Tougher border restrictions

Ciudad Juarez, which neighbours El Paso, Texas, is one of the border towns where numerous undocumented migrants seeking refuge in the United States remain stranded.

Fed up with the wait, hundreds of them attempted to storm an international bridge on March 13 but were blocked by US agents.

The administration of US President Joe Biden has been hoping to stem the record tide of migrants and asylum seekers undertaking often dangerous journeys organised by human smugglers to get to the United States.

Biden proposed new restrictions on asylum seekers in February, hoping to stifle the rush of migrants to the southern border when Covid-related controls are lifted.

The new rules say migrants who arrive at the border and simply cross into the United States will no longer be eligible for asylum.

Firefighters and police remove the body of a migrant from an immigration station in Ciudad Juarez. (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP)

Instead, they must first apply for asylum in one of the countries they pass through to get to the US border or apply online via a US government app.

The new measures came as Biden was facing accusations from Republicans of having lost control of the border.

About 200,000 people try to cross the border from Mexico into the United States each month.

Most are from Central and South America and cite poverty and violence back home when requesting asylum.

A recent report by the International Organisation for Migration said that, since 2014, some 7,661 migrants have died or disappeared en route to the United States, while 988 perished in accidents or while travelling in subhuman conditions