MEXICO CITY — A woman who had just given birth was among 141 migrants detained at a bus stop in southeastern Mexico on Monday, the same day another large group of migrants was found in the area huddled in the back back of a truck with a trailer.
The mother and her newborn girl were taken to a hospital after being detained, according to a statement from the National Institute of Migration (INM).
The mother was among a group of mostly Guatemalans found on the bus in the Gulf state of Veracruz. The group also included 26 unaccompanied minors, according to the statement.
«(The woman) gave birth with the help of those who traveled with her, who cut her umbilical cord,» added the INM.
«We helped the lady and told her to push for (the baby) to come out,» said one of the detainees in a video shared by the agency. “Then we gave her our sweaters… She kept asking about the baby. She could see that she was scared.»
Images released by the agency showed the mother holding the newborn in a thick purple blanket and surgical cover.
It comes after the institute reported on Monday that another 130 Guatemalan migrants had been detained in a van in the same state. Nineteen of them were reported to be unaccompanied minors.
The journey through Mexico to the US is often dangerous for migrants. More than 50 immigrants died last year in a truck in Texas in the worst human trafficking tragedy in recent American history.
The United States has encouraged migrants to use legal avenues to seek entry, including using an app called CBP One to schedule border appointments to apply for asylum.