3 dead after plane fighting screwworm spread crashes in southern Mexico

Advertisement

Advertise with us

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Two Guatemalan pilots and a Mexican agronomist engineer died Friday when their plane crashed in southern Mexico near the border with Guatemala as they freed sterile flies meant to stop the spread of screwworm in cattle.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Monthly Digital Subscription

$0 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*No charge for 4 weeks then price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

Monthly Digital Subscription

$4.75/week*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

No thanks

*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/06/2025 (186 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Two Guatemalan pilots and a Mexican agronomist engineer died Friday when their plane crashed in southern Mexico near the border with Guatemala as they freed sterile flies meant to stop the spread of screwworm in cattle.

Mexico’s Agriculture Ministry said in a statement that the Guatemalan plane crashed near Tapachula in southern Mexico, but did not give a cause.

Mexico had stepped up efforts to control the spread of the pest last month under pressure from the United States government, which suspended cattle imports from Mexico because of fear of the screwworm.

President Claudia Sheinbaum had said Friday that she didn’t know when the suspension would be lifted, but that specialists from the U.S. were in Mexico studying the country’s efforts.

The screwworm is a larva of the Cochliomyia hominivorax fly that can invade the tissues of any warm-blooded animal, including humans. The parasite enters animals’ skin, causing severe damage and lesions that can be fatal.

Report Error Submit a Tip

World

LOAD MORE