Mexicans are sending food and clothing to Tarahumara communities amid a harsh winter and a claim of mass suicides.

Conditions in the remote mountains where the Tarahumara live have always been treacherous. But people who know the tribe dispute the claim of mass suicides.

“We have a history of almost 400 years working in this area, and we can say that in the Tarahumaras’ world view, suicide is not an option," Rev. Guadalupe Gasca, a Jesuit priest, told the Associated Press.

The Mexican Red Cross has made three shipments to the Tarahumaras, with the latest consisting of 270 metric tons of food and 5,000 blankets, the AP reported.

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Mexicans spurred to send help by famine, rumors of mass suicides among Tarahumara Indians (AP 1/16)