¡®They Died In Each Other¡¯s Arms,' Says Mother Of Migrant Man Who Drowned Holding 2-YO Daughter

The picture of a father and daughter lying face down in the muddy water along the banks of the Rio Grande, near Texas, is grim testimony to the humanitarian crisis playing out at the US-Mexico border.

?scar Alberto Mart¨ªnez Ram¨ªrez and his daughter Valeria were swept away by the current near Matamoros, Mexico and Brownsville, Texas.

The image sent shock waves around the world, it shows the girl tucked inside her father¡¯s shirt for protection with her arm draped over his neck.

AP

¡°It¡¯s tough, it¡¯s kind of shocking, that image,¡± 25-year-old ?scar Alberto Mart¨ªnez's grieving mother Rosa Ram¨ªrez told The Associated Press.

¡°But at the same time, it fills me with tenderness. I feel so many things, because at no time did he let go of her.¡±

¡°You can see how he protected her,¡± she said. ¡°They died in each other¡¯s arms.¡±

According to CNN Rosa Ram¨ªrez tried to convince her son and his family not to make the dangerous trek north of Mexico. "As a mother, you don't want your children to be so far away," she said. "But ... the idea of leaving had gotten into their heads."

What actually happened?

Mart¨ªnez decided to make that journey, swimming with Valeria from Matamoros to the Texas side of the Rio Grande, where he left her on the riverbank and started back to get his wife. Seeing him leave, the girl threw herself into the water. Mart¨ªnez returned to get her, but both were swept away. ?valos was not harmed.

And all this while, his wife, Tania Vanessa ?valos and child's mother was witness to the horror unfolding right in front of her and she couldn't do anything.

?scar, his 21-year-old wife Tania, their daughter and his mother shared a home with barred windows in San Mart¨ªn on the outskirts of the capital, San Salvador.

He worked in a pizzeria and his wife worked as a cashier in a fast-food restaurant. Everything came crashing down the moment they decided to chase the 'American dream'.

Julia Le Duc, the photographer who captured the image shares what he witnessed.

The political asylum interview is a long and tiring wait for thousands; while some make it many are turned down. The victim's wife said they had obtained a humanitarian visa from the Mexican government.

There are only three interview slots each week and so turnbacks and a long wait is what pushes people to cross the border illegally.

And so Martinez and family decided to cross the river out of desperation.

AP

"He crossed first with the little girl and he left her on the American side. Then he turned back to get his wife, but the girl went into the water after him. When he went to save her, the current took them both." Julia Le Duc told The Guardian.

"I¡¯ve been a crime reporter for many years, and I¡¯ve seen a lot of bodies ¨C and a lot of drownings. The R¨ªo Bravo [Rio Grande] is a very strong river: you think it¡¯s just shallow, but there are lots of currents and whirlpools."You get numb to it, but when you see something like this it re-sensitizes you," Julia Le Duc told The Guardian.

A grim reminder of the heart-wrenching 2015 photo of drowned 3-year-old Syrian boy, Aylan Kurdi.

The heart-rending picture of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi's lifeless body washed up on a Turkish beach inspired a song titled 'Oh Canada' by Australian singer Missy Higgins.

Missy Higgin's song tells the story from the perspective of Aylan's father, Abdullah, the only surviving member of the family. The Kurdi family decided to embark on this precarious journey to Europe only after they were denied an application.

Back in 2015 Missy Higgin said, "Like most people, the photo of little Alan Kurdi being carried out of the water shook me to my core. We often read about the tragic plight of refugees but I think that picture exposed us to the reality in such a raw way that the truth became inescapable."

Same is the case with ?scar Alberto Mart¨ªnez and his 2-year-old daughter, they were victims of a stringent immigration policy.