Winnipeg Gujarati community ready to help after family's trek ends at US border

A member of the Gujarati community in Winnipeg says they'll support loved ones of the family who died while making the perilous trek to cross into the United States in the bitter cold, whether they resided in the city or not.

Kirit Thakrar, a Winnipeg accountant who is originally from Gujarat, a western state in India, said members of the community are taken aback by the tragedy.

It appears the family of four, whose lives ended in the frigid cold outside Emerson, Man. last week, were among a group of 11 migrants from India trying to cross the border. The surviving people are fluent in Gujarati, a language spoken in western India, and spoke little to no English.

"We're all very upset," Thakrar said.

"Once we find out who the family is, we'll provide the help they need."

Winnipeg's Gujarati community has found themselves thrust into the spotlight after the discovery of four people, believed to be Gujaratis, in a frozen field, just steps outside the Canada-U.S. border.

India's high commissioner to Canada, Ajay Bisaria, called the deaths a "grave tragedy" on Twitter and said a consular team would head to Manitoba to offer assistance. India's ambassador to the United States said the consul team from Chicago would help from Minnesota.

Thakrar said the Gujaratis in Winnipeg tend to come to each other's aid. It's a trait he admires about the community, one which may be needed again.

"It's a very close-knit community," he said. "If anybody has any issues, we all come together and help the family out."

Authorities believe the family of four was being smuggled into the United States as part of an illegal scheme. Steve Shand, a 47-year-old from Florida, has been charged with human smuggling in connection with the incident.

Seven other migrants attempting to cross the border around the same time were detained. They, too, spoke Gujarati.

From his conversations, Thakrar, who has lived in Winnipeg for 40 years, said local members of the community are stumped as to the identities of these cross-border travelers.

Authorities haven't revealed if any of them lived in Manitoba. The RCMP said on Friday it would take a few days to identify the people who died.

"Community members, they don't know who they are. People I talk to, nobody knows who they are."