At least 49 migrants killed in Mexico road accident

At least 49 migrants who were traveling crammed into a trailer died this Thursday after the vehicle collided and overturned on a highway in Chiapas, in southern Mexico, the main access point for undocumented immigrants.

Another 40 people were injured, three of them seriously, while 18 more suffered minor injuries, according to a preliminary report from the prosecutor's office in Chiapas, a state bordering Guatemala.

"From the testimonies of the survivors, they say, most of them are from Guatemala," said Luis Manuel García, state director of Civil Protection.

Most of the injured have already been transferred to public and private hospitals, while the National Migration Institute (INM) is taking care of the legal situation of the victims, García added.

"Serious accident in Chiapas with victims of nationals of other countries. In communication with the State Government and Civil Protection. We make contact with the foreign ministries of the affected countries," Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard tweeted.

Local television images showed a huge deployment of ambulances, firefighters and rescuers around the crashed vehicle, while some still confused and shocked migrants remained at the scene awaiting medical attention.

According to the first investigations, the driver of the truck would have lost control due to speeding, local authorities detailed.

The incident occurred on a stretch of highway that connects the city of Chiapa de Corzo with the capital Tuxtla Gutiérrez, confirmed the state governor Rutilio Escandón.