The end of this month is the deadline for the completion of a memorial to honor the 53 migrants who perished in the back of an sweltering tractor trailer 2022.
The memorial will consist of a slab made of concrete and 53 blocks of limestone, one for every life lost. It will be located along Quintana road in San Antonio, Texas. Each block will be the same height as the migrant’s age.
“Our youngest victim is 13 years old. So, the boulder will be 13 inches long,” District Four Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia told KSAT.
The memorial is expected be completed by the 29th of June. Rocha Garcia said that 53 crosses are already lining the road where the memorial is to be built.
Quintana Road is lined with crosses in honor of the 53 migrants killed in the back seat of an 18-wheeler 2022. A local group plans to make a rosary in honor of the 2 year anniversary.
Tonight on the #Nightbeat, how the city plans to honor the migrants permanently.#KSATnews pic.twitter.com/QU8rgEvYEJ
— KSAT Daniela Ibarra (@KSATDaniela)
June 17, 2024
“We thought that this memorial would be a good opportunity for them to pray and perhaps get a little bit of closure. They might even find out where their loved ones were when they breathed their last breath,” she said.
“I’m glad that this is going to be done because maybe one day, we won’t be able to come back and fix our crosses. But there will be something permanent down there,” said Angelita Overa, who cares for the crosses despite not knowing a single migrant.
She said, “These 53 souls were lost here.” “I love them.” They were human beings.”
“How could they not have given them air conditioning, water, or anything in that 18-wheeler?” Olvera asked of the migrants trapped in the parked vehicle.
On June 29th, at 5 pm, a rosary service is being held at the newly-opened memorial.