The seven trackers who traveled to Mexico to search for dozens of missing migrants

"They walk, they ask, they insist, they jot things down: a name, a date, another place they've never heard of. They work even with the life jackets from the boat ride still on; they don't take them off, in case there isn't enough time. They've spent 16 months searching, and this is the first time they've been able to do it while standing on the same ground their missing loved ones once stood on; seeing the mangroves, the palmthatch roofs, the lagoon brushing up against the Pacific, all of it they are certain their loved ones also saw."

"On December 21, 2024, the trail of 40 migrants vanished in San Jose El Hueyate, in the Mexican state of Chiapas. They boarded a boat bound for Juchitan de Zaragoza, Oaxaca, also in Mexico. They were never heard from again. The families didn't know couldn't have known that another group of at least 20 people had disappeared in the same place and along the same route just two months earlier, on October 21, 2024. And another group, 23 migrants, also vanished from a nearby port on their way to the same destination on September 5, 2024."

"They, the searchers, are seven; they, the missing, are 83. There may be more they don't know, they cannot know. On December 21, 2024, 40 migrants vanished in San Jose El Hueyate, Chiapas, Mexico. They boarded a boat bound for Juchitan de Zaragoza, Oaxaca, also in Mexico. They were never heard from again. Their families didn't know they couldn't know but another group, of at least 20 people, had disappeared in the same place and on the same route just two months earlier, on October 21, 2024."

"And yet another group, with 23 migrants, also disappeared from a nearby port on September 5, 2024, heading for the same destination. Seven relatives are here to search for them; 83 are missing. There could be more;"

Heat and coastal conditions frame a long search for migrants who vanished after boarding boats in San Jose El Hueyate, Chiapas. Patrols, reporters, and seven relatives continue walking, asking, and recording names, dates, and locations. The searchers keep life jackets on, expecting limited time. The families have spent 16 months searching and are now standing where their missing loved ones once stood, near mangroves, palm-thatch roofs, and a lagoon meeting the Pacific. On December 21, 2024, 40 migrants disappeared after traveling toward Juchitan de Zaragoza, Oaxaca. Earlier disappearances occurred on October 21, 2024 with at least 20 migrants, and on September 5, 2024 with 23 migrants, suggesting more cases may exist.

Read at english.elpais.com