California accident victims could be migrants 2:39
(CNN Spanish) -
At least one of the fatal victims in this Tuesday's traffic accident in Imperial, California, was of Guatemalan origin, confirmed the Guatemalan Consul General in Los Angeles, Tekandi Paniagua, in an interview with CNN.
It is a 23-year-old woman.
More than a dozen people were killed when an SUV with 25 occupants on board collided with a truck on State Route 115.
Paniagua reported that another woman from Guatemala is hospitalized and her health is delicate.
"This is a displacement of people who were entering US territory from the city of Mexicali," he added.
The consul said that there are still between 8 to 10 victims who have yet to be identified and that they are working with the Mexican consulate and the United States authorities to determine the nationality and identity of these people who lost their lives in this tragic accident.
"We have constant communication with the authorities of the border patrol and we establish a coordination to be able to determine with the forensic office if they are Guatemalan compatriots," he said.
advertising
They warn about the dangers of crossing the border irregularly
Paniagua added that they are very attentive to the investigations, since they want to know the details of what happened.
“We are interested in determining how these events occurred.
To be able to explain how in a car for seven people we have 25 ", he said.
In addition, he alerted the Guatemalan and migrant community in general of the dangers of crossing the border irregularly and reiterated that the message to families is that the border is "more closely guarded than ever" and that there is no change in immigration measures. from the United States, for which he urges not to try to migrate illegally to this country.
The Guatemalan Consulate in Los Angeles is in contact with the families of the victims to provide support, added the head of the consular office.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a statement that it is investigating whether the fatalities had entered the United States illegally.
Guatemala