London, Europe Brief News – More than 39 people are reportedly dead and more than 29 were injured after a deadly fire at a migrant center near the U.S.-Mexico border.
Mexico’s National Migration Institute (INM) released a statement Tuesday that reported 39 deaths and 29 injuries from the devastating fire, which it claimed broke out just before 10 p.m. on Monday night in the Mexican state of Chihuahua in Ciudad Juarez.
Photos and videos taken outside the facility following the blaze showed several bodies covered in shiny tarps lined up beside emergency service vehicles, reported Reuters. The INM said that the 29 injured were transported to four local hospitals in conditions ranging from “delicate” to “serious.”
A total of 68 migrant from Central and South America had been staying at the facility at the time of the blaze, INM added in its release.
“This immigration authority will promptly monitor the evolution of the health status of those who are hospitalized and will provide full support to the families of the victims,” the INM also said.
Andrea Chávez, federal deputy of Ciudad Juarez, said in a Facebook statement Tuesday that an investigation into the incident had been launched by the country’s prosecutor general.
“It is with deep sadness and grief that we learned of the fire that occurred inside the INM in Ciudad Juárez,” Chávez wrote about the tragedy, the cause of which has yet to be officially announced. “We will wait for the official information and, from this moment on, we extend our condolences to the families of the migrants.”
