Border-crossing deaths drop dramatically in Arizona

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Last year, authorities found so many dead bodies along the Arizona-Mexico border that the local coroner’s office parked a 50-foot refrigerated truck in its receiving area to store the bodies in the summer heat. In the Border Patrol’s Tucson sector -– the nation’s busiest –- a record 249 migrant deaths were reported during the fiscal year.

So far this year, migrant deaths in the same region have plummeted 38%, the Arizona Republic said. The Tucson sector reported 132 deaths through July, compared with 212 during the same period a year ago.

The reasons are unclear. Although apprehensions of undocumented immigrants in the Tucson sector dropped 44% through July, they also dipped during last year’s surge in migrant deaths.

Instead, officials said tougher border enforcement and a sour U.S. economy may have warded off potential migrants, as well as a Border Patrol publicity campaign in Mexico that warned of the dangers of crossing the desert.

Dehydration is a leading cause of death, but the Sonoran Desert’s heat so warps bodies that, in many cases, officials can’t determine a cause of death.

RELATED:

Border deaths in Arizona may break record

Some Border Patrol agents take a chance on love

Quiet border towns don’t live up to their notoriety

-- Ashley Powers in Utah
Twitter.com/ashleypowers