TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Water tanks are scattered across the Southern Arizona borderlands, many belonging to the local organization Humane Borders.
“So we run a series of water stations throughout southern Arizona, and the goal is to simply save lives," said Humane Borders Chair Laurie Cantillo.
She said Thursday that the work has been consistently targeted, noting a shift after President Donald Trump took office.
“I'd say in the last few months, we are getting stations vandalized once or twice a week.”
On Monday, members of the organization saw a video that circulated on X showing a man draining the water in the tanks.
"An individual who's a well-known far right propagandist posted a video of himself draining one of our barrels. So he not only incriminated himself by posting that he was committing a crime, but beyond that, there's a greater crime against humanity.”
The post on X accuses Humane Borders of "incentivizing illegal crossings," which Cantillo said was untrue. She emphasized this work not serving as a political statement, as they are a nonpartisan organization.
Humane Borders has been working with the Pima County Medical Examiner to visibly show migrant bodies found along the southern border. This collaboration started due to the number of bodies starting to increase in 2000. Their migrant death mapping tool shows the total number of remains found since 2000 was 4,366.
While the loss of water and other resources due to vandalism has taken a toll on the organization, Cantillo added the cost is insignificant.
“Well, if it's the difference between living and dying in the desert, it's priceless. How do you put a price on water that could save someone's life?”
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Department confirmed this is an open case as they look to find the person who did this, which Cantillo said was on private property. At minimum, the person responsible could face trespassing charges.
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Reyna Preciado is a reporter for KGUN 9, she joined the KGUN 9 team in July of 2022 after graduating Arizona State University. Share your story ideas with Reyna by emailing reyna.preciado@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, or Twitter.
