DEL RIO, Texas (Border Report) — This is Day 3 of the closure of the international bridge leading to Mexico. The bridge was closed on Friday after an encampment under the bridge of migrants — mostly Haitians — swelled to almost 15,000. But on Sunday, U.S. Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz said the numbers are now 12,662 and federal officials are getting the situation under control. Federal and state law enforcement have been surged to this rural border city that finds itself at the crosshairs of an international humanitarian crisis. Read updates from Border Report Correspondent Sandra Sanchez in Del Rio below.
Read More:
- CBP closes international bridge in response to migrant influx in Del Rio
- A ‘dire situation’ for over 12,500 migrants under the bridge in Del Rio, Texas
- 8,000 migrants await processing under international bridge in Del Rio, Texas
Sunday, Sept. 19, 1:30 p.m.
U.S. Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz traveled to the remote border town of Del Rio, Texas, and told a throng of media during a short news conference "no one has crossed since midnight," in regards to migrants coming from Mexico: Ortiz, who used to be stationed in South Texas, said 3,300 migrants have been moved from the area with the help of Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement agents. He said 3,000 more are to be moved in the next 24 hours.
Ortiz said 12,662 migrants remain under the Del Rio International Bridge, down from 15,000 on Saturday.
Ortiz said flights back to Haiti to repatriate migrants who do not qualify for asylum began Sunday at 3:30 a.m.
Del Rio Mayor Bruno Lozano afterwards said he was grateful for the federal response to his beleaguered community of 40,000. And he said the Mexican city of Acuna, across the Rio Grande, is now "stepping up its game" to help stop the flow of migrants.
Sunday, Sept. 19, 12:30 p.m.
The Del Rio mayor has called a 1 p.m. press conference at the base of the Del Rio International Bridge.
Sunday, Sept. 19, 11:45 a.m.
The Greyhound bus to San Antonio -- one of only two buses from Del Rio each day -- just departed with two dozen migrants on board, mostly Haitians. Among the travelers was a baby born on Wednesday in Del Rio at an area hospital. The newsborn's mother had been living under the bridge and was admitted into an area hospital when she went into labor. Val Verde Humanitarian Border Coalition Director Tiffany Burrows helped to hold the baby and helped the family board the bus.
Sunday, Sept. 19, 11 a.m.
Eighteen migrants, almost all from Haiti, are getting help with last minute bus tickets at the Stripes gas station in Del Rio, which doubles as this border city's only bus station. The bus arrives at 11:30 a.m., one of only two per day, and Santiago Pardo of Church World Service is helping them book travel arrangements on a laptop to New Jersey, Florida and other locations. On Saturday local officials announced the processing of asylum seekers had sped up, to 2,000 per day, in an effort to relieve the masses living under the international bridge.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 8:10 p.m.
Read Sandra Sanchez's latest report on the influx of troopers and National Guard to the border below.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 7:45 p.m.
A sudden storm blew into Del Rio, Texas, bringing winds and some rain and dropping temperatures into the 70s, from triple-digits. It's a welcome respite for everyone -- law enforcement, media and the migrants who had been living in sweltering conditions under the Del Rio International Bridge for days in 100-degree heat.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 6:15 p.m.
Felicia Rangel-Samponaro, co-director of the Sidewalk School for Children Asylum Seekers, tells Border Report that she is in Reynosa, Mexico, helping Haitian migrants who have just arrived in a caravan of 400 south of the town of McAllen, Texas. "I have 9 Haitian asylums seekers in my car," she said. "We are surrounded by Mexican military." She said other volunteers "and strangers" are also helping to pick up the migrants from the road.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 4:45 p.m.
Migrant advocates in South Texas tell Border Report that a caravan of 400 migrants, mostly Haitians, is currently entering the Mexican border town of Reynosa, south of McAllen, Texas. Over 15,000 migrants, mostly Haitians, are living under an international bridge in Del Rio, Texas, having crossed over the past week from the Mexican border town of Acuña in the state of Coahuila. Officials say the migrants are part of a caravan that entered through Panama months ago and headed north.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 4:30 p.m.
According to the Associated Press, the Biden Administration is ramping up its efforts to return many of the Haitian migrants to their homeland. Border Report learned some flights will leave from Laughlin Air Force Base near Del Rio.
The AP reports: "A U.S. official told The Associated Press on Friday that operational capacity and Haiti’s willingness to accept flights will determine how many there will be. The official said progress was being made on negotiations with Haitian authorities. The official said the U.S would likely fly five to eight planes a day, starting Sunday, while another official expected no more than two a day and said all migrants would be tested for COVID-19. Both officials were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity."
Saturday, Sept. 18, 2:45 p.m.
Dozens and dozens of Texas state troopers descend upon the banks of the Rio Grande near the bridge, sent by Gov. Greg Abbott to assist with migrant situation. Many are seen standing behind the border wall under the shade of a tree in triple-digit heat. Helicopters buzz above.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 2:05 p.m.
Border Patrol agents rush a pregnant woman to emergency care from the bridge in the back of a truck. She was lying down and agents were on top of her trying to help her as they drove away.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 2:00 p.m.
Del Rio Mayor Bruno Lozano ended a press conference where he announced 1,000 state troopers were being surged to the border city. He said the number of migrants living under the international bridge is now 14,812, up from 12,500 a day earlier. Lozano was joined by U.S. Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee who blamed the Biden administration and called this a "flashpoint" in failed immigration policy.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 12:30 p.m.
U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement refuse to unload two busloads full of migrants at the Val Verde Border Humanitarian Coalition after media photographed bags being unloaded from the bottom of one bus. The ICE official yelled at media, including Border Report, repeatedly. Center Director Tiffany Burrow appealed with the officials to unload the migrants -- quantity onboard unknown -- but eventually the buses left. It was uncertain what would happen to the migrants. No migrants were photographed.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 11 a.m.
Several stores in the Plaza del Sol Mall in Del Rio did not open because many workers live across the Rio Grande in Ciudad Acuña, in the northern Mexican border state of Coahuila. Several other businesses in this town of 50,000 also have "CLOSED" signs as many workers were stuck on either side of the border when the international bridge was closed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at 6 p.m. on Friday.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 10:30 a.m.
A delivery truck filled with donated goods arrives at the Val Verde Border Humanitarian Coalition which is helping upwards of 200 migrants per day during this surge of migrants to the small town of Del Rio, Texas.
Saturday, Sept. 18, 10 a.m.
About 50 pro-Trump supporters gathered near the closed Del Rio International Bridge protesting what they call "failed" U.S. immigration policy by the Biden administration. The group held signs urging the migrants on the bridge be sent back. Some motorists honked and waved, although there weren't many because that section of the road is basically closed. After 90 minutes in high-heat, the group walked to the base of the bridge and took a photo beside the "Welcome to Texas" sign and Texas flag.
Friday, Sept. 17, 9 p.m.
Motorists waiting for the Del Rio International Bridge to reopen were told to move their vehicles as local law enforcement were expecting a truck with barricades coming from Laredo, Texas, to be delivered. The barricades would allow all law enforcement to be surged under the bridge -- not atop it -- Del Rio police told Border Report.
Friday, Sept. 17, 8:30 p.m.
Val Verde County Judge Lewis Owens visited the closed base of the Del Rio International Bridge and spoke with motorists and pedestrians telling them the bridge would not be reopening overnight. He suggested they drive 57 miles south to Eagle Pass, Texas, to enter Mexico in the city of Piedras Negras. He said the total number of migrants under the bridge is over 13,000.
Friday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m.
There is a scramble for hotel rooms and lodging in this small town of 50,000 as the international bridge is closed. Many motorists tell Border Report they cannot afford a hotel. One teen boy on a bicycle said his entire family lives in Acuña. He was trying to return from his job in Del Rio in a warehouse when the bridge was closed before sunset. An elderly couple in a truck asked Border Report for directions for how to get from the Mexican border city of Piedras Negras to Acuña if they crossed the bridge in Eagle Pass, Texas, 57 miles to the south of Del Rio. They said they needed to get home and did not have money for a hotel. They did not have a cellphone.
Friday, Sept. 17, 6 p.m.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials close the Del Rio International Bridge leading to the northern Mexican border town of Acuña during Friday night rush-hour. Hundreds of motorists and pedestrians, including many on bicycles, wait on the side of the highway hoping the bridge will reopen. No explanation was given to motorists and no warning was issued to locals before the bridge was closed. Many travelers told Border Report they were trying to return home to Acuña after working the week in the United States and had suitcases in hand. (BELOW: Motorists and pedestrians wait, some with suitcases, in shock as the Del Rio International Bridge was closed before sunset. Photos by Sandra Sanchez/Border Report.)
Friday, Sept. 17, 12 p.m.
Del Rio Mayor Bruno Lozano holds a press conference and announces he has signed an emergency declaration to shut southbound lanes of the Del Rio International Bridge, prevent traffic to Mexico due to 11,500 migrants living under the bridge, most from Haiti.
Friday, Sept. 17, 9:30 a.m.
Border Report walked over the Del Rio International Bridge to Acuña, Mexico, and saw migrants building tents out of Carrizo cane from the banks of the Rio Grande, sleeping on boxes and piles of trash.
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