Bodies of Migrants Died in Texas Trailer Returned to Mexico

This mountain village in eastern Mexico mourned the return of three teenagers, all cousins, lost among the 53 migrants who died inside a semitrailer in San Antonio, Texas, on Thursday after days of preparation and donations to meet funeral costs.

Residents of San Marcos Atexquilapan came forward in the preceding 24 hours to assist the Olivares family in receiving the bodies of brothers Jar and Yovani Valencia Olivares, 19 and 16, as well as their cousin Misael Olivares, 16.

Men moved chairs from one house to another, while women prepared banana leaves for tamales and the boys' friends covered the wall with pictures of all three.

As the 16 victims of the tragedy were flown back to their hometowns on two military planes on Wednesday, and at least one more journey was scheduled, similar scenes of sombre anticipation were seen throughout Mexico.

According to the requests of the victims' families, 25 of Mexico's 26 victims will be returned, according to the foreign affairs ministry of Mexico.

Javier Flores López's body was delivered on Thursday to the community of Cerro Verde in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, where his mother, siblings, wife, and kids conducted a wake in the tiny chapel.

Flores López, a construction worker who was previously residing in Ohio, visited his wife and kids in Mexico before departing once more for the United States last month.

In Guatemala and Honduras, which also lost 21 and six migrants, respectively, the process of returning the victims was anticipated to continue in the days to come.

The Olivares were one of the ten teenagers among the 53 fatalities. Men carried the caskets in the pitch black and placed them side by side before a big crucifix that was covered by tarps that were strung above the mourners. The teens would be buried on Friday.

On Wednesday evening, as the three hearses carrying the caskets approached, people lined the road holding candles. The lads' pals formed a band, and they played music as the crowd slowly followed the hearses.

The dwellings of the families, arranged in a row, attracted hundreds of locals. The young people were all well-known and participated in a local soccer league.

As the caskets were brought to the family's house, mourners threw white flower petals and sobbed.

“I can’t accept it,” whispered Yolanda Valencia, mother of Jaír and Yovani. You have to “work hard” in life, “try to fight to make their dreams reality.”

In this village of around 1,500 inhabitants, which is known for its shoemaking, her sons planned to construct a home and start a shoe business. They had a lot of unfulfilled objectives, she claimed.

We were good friends and were teammates on a soccer team, and Gildardo Fernández remarked, "The reality is, they were genuinely extremely humble inpiduals, very hard workers, and fun to be around."

In a way, I respect it since it is difficult for someone to leave their family and neighbourhood in search of a better life, Fernández remarked. "Sometimes you have to leave," he continued. Sadly, things didn't turn out the way we had hoped.

The investigation continues into the smuggling ring that ultimately abandoned the trailer of migrants on the outskirts of San Antonio on a day temperatures neared 100 degrees. U.S. authorities have arrested four people, including the truck’s driver.