Homeland Security shut down some lanes of traffic at a Mexican border crossing on Wednesday and shifted personnel to help with the latest crisis – a new surge of thousands of migrants streaming into Eagle Pass, Texas.
Reports on the ground indicate that over 4,000 people swarmed in on Wednesday morning and more were still arriving in the afternoon, overwhelming Customs and Border Protection’s capacity to handle them.
To manage the situation, CBP, which oversees both the Border Patrol and the legal crossings, started taking people from a vehicle lane and a railway crossing and relocated them to monitor the mass of people now camped on the U.S. side.
“In response to this influx in encounters, we will continue to surge all available resources to expeditiously and safely process migrants,” the agency said in a statement.
CBP also promised to “maximize consequences” for those who entered without legal status, although implementation of this has proven challenging for the department in many cases.
This surge of migrants is the latest to test the Biden administration, which has been unsuccessful in stopping the flow of people and has struggled to provide adequate support for those who arrive.
After the pandemic emergency ended in May, officials were relieved when border numbers dropped. However, the numbers started climbing again in July and have reportedly increased even more in August. CBP has yet to release the August numbers.
Videos and photos show thousands of migrants congregating at the border. This wave of migrants has posed a significant challenge for the administration, reminiscent of a similar incident two years ago when 15,000 migrants, predominantly Haitians, rushed the border at Del Rio, Texas.
During the previous incident, President Biden suggested that the migrants were whipped and Vice President Kamala Harris likened it to the whipping of Black slaves. However, a CBP investigation concluded that no migrants were whipped, although two agents were reprimanded for using harsh language.
