Migrant caravan from Central America, its numbers thinning, slowly moves north in Mexico

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Honduran migrants taking part in a caravan heading to the U.S., get on a truck near Pijijiapan, Mexico.

(GUILLERMO ARIAS / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrant children heading in a caravan to the U.S., travel on a truck near Pijijiapan, Mexico.

(GUILLERMO ARIAS / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants heading in a caravan to the U.S., travel aboard a truck near Mapastepec, Mexico.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants take a bath in a river in Pijijiapan, Mexico.

(Rodrigo Abd / Associated Press)

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Central American migrants traveling with a caravan to the U.S. climb onto to a trailer bed, hitching a ride to Pijijiapan, Mexico.

(Rodrigo Abd / Associated Press)

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Melvin Marquez from Honduras, relaxes after having a bath in a river in Pijijiapan, Mexico.

(Rodrigo Abd / Associated Press)

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Central American migrants traveling with a caravan to the U.S. make their way to Pijijiapan, Mexico.

(Rodrigo Abd / Associated Press)

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Central American migrants rest for the night in Pijijiapan, Chiapas state, Mexico, as their caravan slowly makes its way toward the U.S. border.

(Rebecca Blackwell / AP)

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Central American migrants walking to the U.S. start their day departing Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico.

(Moises Castillo / Associated Press)

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Hondruans bath at a river in Huixtla, Mexico, during their journey to the U.S.

(JOSE MENDEZ /EPA /REX / Shutterstock)

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A Honduran migrant woman taking part in a caravan heading to the U.S., has an ultrasound done to check her pregnancy during a stop in their journey at the Central Park in Huixtla, Mexico.

(JOHAN ORDONEZ / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants taking part in a caravan heading to the U.Ss, rest at a makeshift camp during a stop in Huixtla, Mexico.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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A Central American migrant traveling with a caravan to the U.S. plays basketball on a temporary shelter in Huixtla, Mexico

(Moises Castillo / Associated Press)

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Honduran migrants aboard a truck on their way to Tapachula, Mexico, as they head toward the U.S. border.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants in a caravan to the U.S. border on their way to Tapachula, Mexico, in a truck.

(AFP/Getty Images)

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Aerial view of Honduran migrants aboard a truck as they take part in the caravan on the outskirts of Tapachula, Mexico.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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A Honduran migrant family taking part in a caravan heading to the U.S. border rest on their arrival in Huixtla, Mexico.

(JOHAN ORDONEZ / AFP/Getty Images)

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Aerial view of Honduran migrants in Tapachula, Mexico, as they walk toward the U.S. border.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants rest on their arrival in Huixtla, Mexico, as they take part in a caravan heading to the U.S. border.

(JOHAN ORDONEZ / AFP/Getty Images)

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A Central American migrant, who fell from the back of a moving vehicle and died, lies on a highway outside of Tapachula, Mexico.

(Moises Castillo / Associated Press)

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Central American migrants traveling in a caravan to the U.S. border rest in a central park in Huixtla, Mexico.

(Moises Castillo / Associated Press)

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A Mexican federal police officer speaks with Honduran migrants heading in a caravan to the U.S. on the road linking Ciudad Hidalgo and Tapachula, Mexico.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants on a makeshift raft cross the Suchiate River, on the Guatemala-Mexico border, in Ciudad Hidalgo.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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A Honduran migrant in a caravan toward the U.S. waits to cross the border from Ciudad Tecun Uman, Guatemala, to Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico.

(ORLANDO SIERRA / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants taking part in a caravan heading to the U.S. rest at the main square in Tapachula, Chiapas state, Mexico.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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An aerial view of migrants in a caravan headed toward the U.S. on the road linking Ciudad Hidalgo and Tapachula, Chiapas state, Mexico.

(PEDRO PARDO / AFP/Getty Images)

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A group of Honduran migrants arrives to the Mexican side of the border after crossing the Suchiate River aboard a raft made out of tractor inner tubes and wooden planks, on the the border with Guatemala, in Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico.

(Moises Castillo / AP)

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Thousands of migrants from Honduras who forced their way through Guatemala’s northwestern border flooded onto a bridge leading to Mexico and waited in the hope of continuing their journey to the United States.

(Pedro Pardo / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants taking part in a caravan heading to the United States board makeshift rafts to cross the Suchiate River, natural border between Guatemala and Mexico, in Ciudad Tecun Uman, Guatemala.

(ORLANDO SIERRA / AFP/Getty Images)

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Members of the migrant caravan from Honduras rest on a bridge over the Suchiate River which forms the Guatemala-Mexico border in Ciudad Tecun Uman, Guatemala.

(John Moore / Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants taking part in a caravan heading to the United States cross the Suchiate River, natural border between Guatemala and Mexico, in a makeshift raft, in Ciudad Tecun Uman, Guatemala.

(ORLANDO SIERRA / AFP/Getty Images)

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A Honduran migrant traveling as part of a caravan prepares to jump into the Suchiate River from the Guatemala-Mexico international border bridge, near a Mexican Federal Police officer, in Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas state, Mexico.

(Pedro Pardo / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants heading in a caravan toward the United States wait to help fellow men get down to the Suchiate River from the Guatemala-Mexico international border bridge, in Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas state, Mexico.

(Pedro Pardo / AFP/Getty Images)

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Honduran migrants heading in a caravan toward the United States rest at a temporary shelter in Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas state, Mexico.

(Pedro Pardo / AFP/Getty Images)

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Hundreds of demonstrators with a Honduran flag protest in favor of the caravan of migrants who are currently stuck on the Guatemala-Mexico border, in front of the American embassy, in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

(Fernando Antonio / AP)

By Patrick J. McDonnellForeign Correspondent

Oct. 25, 2018 12:18 PM PT

Reporting from Tapachula, Mexico — A migrant caravan from Central America that has drawn the ire of the Trump administration moved slowly north Thursday, advancing beyond the Mexican town of Mapastepec in southeastern Chiapas state.

The caravan, mostly composed of people from Honduras, many on foot, has thinned since about 7,000 people crossed into southern Mexico from Guatemala in recent days. Many people crossed illegally on rafts across the river that marks the border between the two nations.

Unofficial estimates indicated that some 3,500 to 4,000 people were in the caravan when it reached Mapastepec, about 90 miles north of the Mexico-Guatemala border.

The U.S. border was more than 1,000 miles away. It was unclear what route the caravan would take and at what point the marchers might arrive along the almost 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border. Some caravan members may disperse and head to various crossing points, participants said. Some may attempt to catch rides on a northbound freight train, known as la Bestia, or the Beast.

Is the U.S. really facing a border crisis? »

The caravan set off Oct. 13 in Honduras and has made its way through Guatemala and southeastern Mexico, despite broiling temperatures and occasional downpours. Many caravan participants have dropped out because of the difficulties.

At times, the group stretched out over several miles along the Pan-American Highway, which is bordered by mango and banana plantations and pasture carved out of the semi-jungle landscape. The migrants walk and seek rides from motorists and truck drivers, and occasionally jump on public transportation. Some young men hitch rides on semi-trailers, a hazardous maneuver.

At least one caravan member, a Honduran man in his early 20s, was killed after being run over by a vehicle.

Upon reaching a town, the caravan members typically rest for an evening or more, often staying on streets and in plazas and parks, seeking out shade and shelter. Aid groups, church volunteers and local families have provided food, water and other necessities. Many caravan participants have suffered from dehydration, exhaustion, insect bites and other ailments.

Neither Mexican police nor immigration officials have made a concerted effort to deter the group.

Many caravan participants say they are fleeing poverty and violence in Central America. The Trump administration has characterized some as criminals and economic migrants and say they do not qualify for political asylum in the United States.

More than 1,600 former caravan participants are applying for refugee status in Mexico and are being kept at a sprawling fairgrounds site in Tapachula, about 20 miles north of the border with Guatemala, authorities say.

President Trump has portrayed the caravan’s bedraggled assemblage as a national security threat during campaign appearances in advance of U.S. midterm elections Nov. 6.

Mexican authorities have straddled a line between their avowed respect for human rights for migrants—Mexico is a major source of immigrants in the United States—and pressure from Washington to halt the migrants’ advance.

In the town of Huixtla, about 50 miles north of the Guatemalan border, more than 200 exhausted and ailing caravan participants returned south late Wednesday on four buses. Honduran diplomats in Mexico helped arrange the return trip.

“I would keep on going, but my daughter has a fever and she needs rest to get better,” said Merlyn Guardado, 37, who said she joined the caravan Oct. 14 in Honduras. Like others, she said she heard the news about the caravan on TV, packed up and quickly met the group, along with her three children — two sons, 14 and 9, and her daughter, Meylin, 3.

“I did it for the kids more than anything,” Guardado said while seated in the plaza in Huixtla, cradling Meylin. “There’s no jobs for anyone in Honduras, men or women.”

As dusk neared, four buses pulled up in the plaza in Huixtla to take them back to Honduras.

“We’ll be home at this time tomorrow,” said Guardado, exhausted, disappointed, but also relieved.

Other northbound caravans reportedly have been forming in Central America, despite attempts by authorities in Honduras and Guatemala to thwart such efforts. Trump has said Central American nations could face aid cutoffs because of the northward flow of migrants.

Mexican authorities this week moved to shut off illegal crossings along the border with Guatemala. Mexican immigration authorities were stationed in large numbers on the muddy northern side of the Rio Suchiate.

Among those detained Wednesday by Mexican immigration agents for processing and possible deportation was Claudia Maria Jimenez, 45, of El Salvador, who said her husband vanished in Mexico more than a year ago.

“I just came to look for my husband,” Jimenez said.

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Twitter: @PmcdonnellLAT