Eagle Pass under state of emergency as migrants overwhelm border
- Officials declare emergency, ask for state and federal aid as crossings rise
- Large groups of migrants gathered on Mexico’s side of border at Eagle Pass
- These numbers rival ones seen before the end of Title 42 in May
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(NewsNation) — Officials at the southern border are facing significant challenges as they manage the continuous influx of thousands of migrants into the U.S.
The most recent influx of migrants is causing concern once again along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Video provided to NewsNation shows migrants riding atop train cars as a rapid means to reach the border.
In Eagle Pass, Texas, migrants are seen crawling beneath barbed wire near the Rio Grande River. Dozens of them huddled under the bridge leading to Mexico, awaiting processing.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced the suspension of vehicle processing at Bridge One in order to allocate officers to assist in apprehending migrants.
“These cities are not equipped to have this many people on the ground like food and medicine. There are children in this group,” said U.S Border Patrol Chief Ron Vitiello.
More than 10,000 migrants crossed the southern border into the U.S. Wednesday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection sources told NewsNation.
Numbers like that haven’t been seen since before the end of the pandemic-era policy Title 42, which allowed officials to turn migrants away on public health grounds. Before Title 42’s expiration May 11, illegal crossings started to surge, although shortly after the policy was lifted, they dropped dramatically.
In recent days, officials informed NewsNation of two tragic incidents along the border. A 3-year-old boy died after being rescued from the river, followed by the passing of an adult male the next day.
In response to these events, the mayor of Eagle Pass issued a disaster declaration. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has deployed the Texas National Guard and DPS troopers to address the situation.
“We will have additional state troopers, National Guard and we will start making arrests for state violations,” said Texas Department of Public Safety Lt. Christopher Olivarez.
National Guardsmen are installing additional razor wire along the Rio Grande. In response to this, Abbott has accused Border Patrol agents of tampering with the wire.
“This is an issue that’s been around for decades,” said Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary. “This is a broken immigration system. This is why the president on his first day put forth a comprehensive piece of legislation to try to deal with this immigration.”
NewsNation contacted CBP to inquire about Abbott’s allegation regarding the concertina wire but did not receive a response.
