PIMA — The mountains and desert of the U.S. state of Arizona and the Mexican state of Sonora, which straddle the border between the two countries, is dangerous territory for human life: there’s the risk the stifling heat of the intense sun, which is simply deadly in the summer to the unbearable cold during the winter to lethal injuries not only from snakes or other animals but also from cacti.
For the latest news & views from every corner of the world, Worldcrunch Today is the only truly international newsletter. Sign up here.
Thorns from these plants can cause lesions and form blisters like those that forensic experts often find on the soles of the feet of hundreds of migrant bodies that have been found in these beautiful yet inhospitable landscapes.
Dying in the desert
It is difficult to know exactly how many have died crossing the southern border of the United States; Not all human remains are recovered, and each state has its own policy. The number of people who do make it across alive is also difficult to determine.
Figures from the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office in Arizona, which is on one of the busiest migrant routes, indicate an average of 160 bodies recovered annually in its jurisdiction since 2000.
People usually died of “natural” causes, such as dehydration or hyperthermia.
The Colibrí Center, an NGO that began as a volunteer service at the Pima County morgue, estimates that almost 8,000 people have died crossing the border since 1998, including some 4,000 in Arizona’s Sonoran desert. Another NGO, Humane Borders, has been mapping spots where bodies are found. Its work includes placing water tanks in the desert, relocating them using its “death maps” to reduce deaths, and helping coroners in their examinations.
Forensic reports do not cite a specific cause for most of the deaths in the desert because the conditions in which the remains are found do not allow the cause of death to be determined. Bones or remains must undergo a costly DNA identification process (the financing for which is not guaranteed). And bodies that are found before they are reduced to a skeleton (which under certain conditions can occur in two weeks) are usually of people who died of “natural” causes, such as dehydration or hyperthermia.
Identifying dead bodies
A body at an advanced stage of decomposition is still easier to identify than bones — although those cases can be simplified if ID documents are also found. Degraded or dried remains can still yield informative traits, such as tattoos or fingerprints. The latter is useful if the person concerned had a criminal record and was cited in police files.
From 2000 to 2023, the corpses of some 2,400 migrants were identified in Pima County, the vast majority were Mexicans, followed by Guatemalan and Honduran nationals. Some 1,500 remains have yet to be identified.
To avoid a fatal outcome, authorities have urged people not to cross illegally. And those who do cross are advised to call 911 if they find themselves in a life-threatening situation.
Smuggling methods are being refined, making it more difficult to find or rescue migrants.
Where phone calls are not possible, authorities have placed rescue beacons or “panic poles” with a button to activate a rescue operation by the U.S. Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue unit (Borstar). The Tucson area of Pima County has 34 such points for an area of 234,000 square kilometers. Although the rescued persons would then face prosecution, as U.S. authorities point out, at least they will be alive.
In contrast, coyotes, or smugglers, promise to get people out of Mexico but think nothing of leaving them in the desert if necessary. For years now, experts have noted that smuggling methods are being refined, making it more difficult to find or rescue migrants, including by camouflaging them or wrapping footwear in bits of carpet or cloth to prevent footprints.
Legal options
NGOs are also working to reduce fatalities with the logical argument that breaking migratory laws should not become a death sentence. These are usually independent bodies operating with volunteers and diverse funding including donations. They, too, face intermittent threats — presumably from people opposed to immigration — and may see their water tanks vandalized.
Despite the scope and dangers of this work, volunteers such as Andrew Winter remain at the border to provide migrants with basic assistance. He is part of a network of organizations including the Samaritans, No More Deaths, Salvavisión and Humane Borders.
A Nicaraguan migrant at one of the network’s reception camps said he did not want to risk his life in the desert and had, like many others, crossed with the intention of turning himself over to the authorities and applying for asylum — which can take years to process with no guarantees.
Fear or desperation
In addition to discouraging migration and detaining smugglers, the U.S. offers another option for those seeking refuge: CBP One, an online appointment form for entry at formal crossings like the McAllen-Hidalgo bridge.
While many who flee their country in fear or in desperation do not use this method, considered too slow, others say it is worth the wait. The online system kickstarts the asylum application, which can take at least two years, initially.
Of course, few people are given asylum (between 10 and 20% of applicants), and the process recently became more restrictive in response to an increase in illegal arrivals. As NGOs point out in dismay: that can only fuel despair — and more risky crossings that too often end up in tragedy.
