Some crossings on US-Mexico border still shut as cities, agents confront rise in migrant arrivals
After a dip in illegal crossings that followed policy changes in May, the Biden administration is again on its heels as more asylum-seekers cross the U.S. border from Mexico
EAGLE PASS, Texas (AP) — The week began in Eagle Pass with rumors that large crowds of migrants might show up. On Friday, the small Texas border city was scrambling: nearly 9,000 asylum-seekers and counting had crossed from Mexico, an international bridge remained closed and a 3-year-old boy had drowned in the Rio Grande.
“Before we would hear rumors, nothing happened,” Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber said. “But this time something happened.”
The unfolding response in Eagle Pass, where the mayor declared a state of emergency, illustrates how Border Patrol agents have become overwhelmed in recent days by asylum-seekers on parts of the U.S. border with Mexico. In San Diego and El Paso, Texas, officials this week also closed border crossings so agents could help with the influx.
