Thousands of migrants showed up underneath an international bridge in Del Rio, Texas, on Monday, and the numbers have been growing each day, topping 8,000 on Thursday, the mayor said.
Bruno Lozano, the city’s Democratic mayor, claimed there were 2,200 people on Monday and 5,600 migrants as of Wednesday, a large influx he described as “beyond crisis.”
“This is urgent,” he continued. “This is dire.”
Drone footage captured at the scene shows vast numbers of people idling under and around the bridge while awaiting processing to enter the United States, according to Fox’s Bill Melugin, who claimed the number rose from 4,000 people Wednesday morning and more than doubled to 8,200 on Thursday.
“Law enforcement source on the ground at the bridge this morning just sent me this video showing the situation there,” Melugin said, noting he was told a “large majority” of the migrants are Haitians.
According to Melugin, Customs and Border Protection agents said the agency saw the situation as “out of control,” though CBP would not confirm that description to the Washington Examiner and declined to comment on the number of migrants under the bridge.
Law enforcement source on the ground at the bridge this morning just sent me this video showing the situation there. I’m told a large majority of the migrants are Haitians and more are crossing into the US and arriving at the bridge by the minute. BP w/ limited manpower @FoxNews pic.twitter.com/dHWCrhFikq
— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) September 16, 2021
Instead, CBP said it was “increasing its manpower in the Del Rio Sector” and coordinating with the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies and state and local partners to “address the current level of migrant encounters and to facilitate a safe, humane and orderly process.”
“To prevent injuries from heat-related illness, the shaded area underneath Del Rio International Bridge is serving as a temporary staging site while migrants wait to be taken into USBP custody,” CBP added in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
Lawmakers and local leaders condemned the scene under the bridge on Thursday, with Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas decrying the “barbaric” situation as the fault of President Joe Biden’s administration.
The months of July and August saw records of migrant encounters at the southern border, with over 400,000 migrant encounters across both months, according to CBP. The agency has marked 1.5 million encounters for the fiscal year 2021.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted on Thursday that the Texas National Guard had apprehended a group of illegal immigrants crossing into Texas from Mexico.
“By air, ground, and on the water Texas is securing the border,” said Abbott, who declared a disaster over the border “emergency” in June.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The Washington Examiner contacted the governor’s office but did not immediately receive a response.
