Two large groups totaling nearly 300 migrants crossed the Rio Grande into Eagle Pass early Saturday despite heavy rains and thunderstorms. The migrants seemed to disregard the inclement weather and surrendered to Border Patrol agents in two separate groups. The largest group crossing the Rio Grande consisted of nearly 170 mostly Venezuelan migrants that surrendered to authorities just before daybreak.
The source says the heavy downpour and accompanying thunderstorms crippled a nearby Border Patrol Central Processing Center (CPC) to the north of the city. Lighting strikes, according to the source, forced the facility to halt processing as repairs are scheduled. The source says the migrants who were arrested in the two large groups were taken to Border Patrol stations in lieu of the larger CPC to be processed and detained until the needed repairs are completed.
The City of Eagle Pass opened its Emergency Operations Center due to the inclement weather forecast for the border region that ultimately led to the Border Patrol Processing Center’s outage late Friday evening. A storm warning notification was issued by the city forecasting up to ten inches of rainfall and sporadic thunderstorms throughout the weekend and into early next week.
The increased rainfall will likely contribute to a rise in water levels and current flow in the Rio Grande. The already hazardous conditions faced by migrants during border crossings are likely to become even deadlier due to the swift currents and rise in water levels caused by local flooding.
During one period of increased water flow rates in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, nine migrants from one single group drowned in September while attempting the crossing. The source says the latest group crossings may signal a departure from recent months of slower-than-normal migrant activity in the Del Rio Sector prior to Friday’s end of the CDC Title 42 migrant expulsion authority.
In December, more than 700 migrants in one single group surrendered to Border Patrol agents after crossing the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass. The group consisted of mostly Cuban and Nicaraguan migrants. As reported by Breitbart Texas, the increased application of the Title 42 COVID-19 authority to expel the migrants from Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua to Mexico led to a decrease in the frequency and size of large migrant group crossings in the border town beginning in January.
In the three days leading up to Friday’s end of the Title 42 emergency expulsion authority, migrant apprehensions nationwide increased to more than 10,000 per day. The source believes that increases in migrant crossings, which up to now have not been seen in the Border Patrol’s Del Rio sector to the extent occurring in Brownsville and El Paso, are likely to manifest in Eagle Pass soon.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on Twitter @RandyClarkBBTX.