Mexican migration center guards seen walking away from fire: Surveillance video

Surveillance footage, captured in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, at a migrant detention facility, appears to exhibit security guards walking away from the building while locked-up immigrants remained behind bars as a fire absorbed the facility. The inferno killed 38 people, and authorities stated that immigrants in the facility ignited the blaze after declaring they would be deported.

The video seems to show two guards departing the room, where the caged-up migrants are visible behind a barred and locked door, as the fire begins in a corner and quickly expands. A migrant can be seen coming up to the door before retreating after a few seconds, but the door remained locked throughout. Flames gradually cover the entire view, and visibility is limited to smoke by the end of the 30 seconds clip.

The late Monday inferno also resulted in dozens of people being injured, with some taken to local hospitals to receive treatment for their injuries. The people in detention were mostly from Central and South America, with the vast majority being migrants from Guatemala, Honduras, Venezuela, and El Salvador.

The area between El Paso and Ciudad Juarez is one of the most popular spots for immigrants looking to cross the southern U.S border, and there have been reports of an increase in incoming immigrants in anticipation of the termination of the COVID-era Title 42 immigration policy.