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In the final week of December 2010, Mexican Authorities reported that several boats wrecked just off the coast of Matamoros.

That left several families searching for fishermen lost at sea.
           
Just last week, three bodies washed onto shore on South Padre Island.
           
The Mexican Consulate in Brownsville said they positively identified two of the bodies as those of the fishermen missing.

Consul of Protection Luis Chao Pratt said, "there were two accidents - one vessel (had) one person and the second accident (had) two persons. The first (body) we already sent to Mexico."

According to Chao Pratt, the body sent back to Mexico was that of 31-year-old Juan Carrillo Velasquez originally from Veracruz.

The second victim, Chao Pratt said, is a fisherman also from Veracruz, however, sending the body back to Mexico will not be as easy.

"It’s Silverio de la Rosa Cadena, 42-years-old of Minatitlan, Veracruz, but the authorities in Mexico, don’t' have any information regarding the relatives," Chao Pratt said.

Cadena's body will remain in the coroner's office until family is found.

Identifying the third body recovered will be even a bigger challenge since officials said it’s badly decomposed.

Pratt adds that the fishing industry in Mexico can be dangerous, and often fishermen take the risk to bring enough to the Mexican market to meet the demand for sea food.

"According to the information we received (these were) people that are hired to work as fishermen at the port of entry because in Veracruz there's a lot of fishermen,” Chao Pratt said.  “And these people come from the south and work for some people - they are not the owners of the boats - they work for someone.”