The operator of the largest rail network in the MexicoFerromex, announced Tuesday September 19 that it had suspended the circulation of 60 freight trains due to the influx of thousands of migrants who use them to reach the border with the United States.
Some 4,300 people are still on board trains or at Ferromex operating sites in the cities of Torreon, Irapuato, San Francisco de los Romo and Chihuahua, where fatal accidents have occurred in recent days, said the company in a press release.
“Given the notable increase in the number of migrants concentrated in various regions of the country and the serious risk that the use of freight trains for transport represents for their safety, Ferromex has temporarily immobilized 60 trains,” Ferromex said.
The company did not specify what proportion of its activity is affected by this measure, but indicates that the 60 trains have a loading capacity equivalent to that of 1,800 trucks.
For years, thousands of migrants from South and Central America have used Mexican freight trains – one of which is nicknamed “The Beast” or “Death Train” – to cross the country towards the border with the United States in the north of the country. Many of them died or had to have amputations after accidentally falling from train roofs.
Corridor to the asylum
The network operated by Ferromex covers 10,000 km of track in Mexico, internationally connecting “eight ports and six border crossings”, according to its website. Ferromex said it was waiting for measures from the authorities to resolve the situation which, it warned, should have an impact on production or supply chains.
Mexico is a corridor through which thousands of migrants pass on their way to its northern border to seek asylum in the United States or attempt to enter without a visa. Many of them travel clandestinely, crammed inside trains or trucks in inhumane conditions, subjected to mistreatment by smugglers.
On Monday, several people were injured when thousands of migrants, most of them Haitians, tried to force their way into the immigration office in Tapachula (south) to demand the issuance of transit permits.
With AFP
2023-09-20 01:33:31
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