Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
WAVY News 10
Migrant death toll up to 164 in El Paso region
By Julian Resendiz,
4 days ago
EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Migrant encounters have plateaued in the El Paso region, after several weeks of steep declines.
The U.S. Border Patrol is reporting an average of 411 daily encounters in August along an El Paso Sector that runs from Hudspeth County, Texas, to the New Mexico-Arizona state line. That compares with the 374.6 daily encounters recorded in July, per the U.S. Customs and Border Protection official website .
Border Patrol encounters by month in the El Paso Sector
Border Patrol encounters by month in the El Paso Sector through July of the Fiscal Year 2024. (CBP graphic)
Most recent encounters are being reported in the vicinity of the Santa Teresa (New Mexico) Station. That includes Mount Cristo Rey in Sunland Park, the desert west of that community and empty stretches south of NM State Road 9.
The mountain has long been the site of emergency rescues of migrants who begin the climb in Mexico and slip into deep ravines or are abandoned by smugglers for not being able to keep up with a group. The stretch of desert south of NM State Road 273 (McNutt Drive) and south of NM 9 (Columbus Highway) has become a graveyard for others who lose their bearings in extreme heat after climbing down the border wall.
The Border Patrol on Monday told Border Report it has rescued 845 migrants in dire straits since last Oct. 1. And, as of Aug. 19, come upon 164 bodies. The migrant fatalities in the region are up 18.5 percent since July 25 and have now surpassed last year’s total death toll of 149.
This graphic by the City of El Paso shows CBP encounters slightly trending up in the past four weeks.
The top nationalities being apprehended in the El Paso Sector in August are Mexicans, Guatemalans, Colombians, Venezuelans and Ecuadorian, the Border Patrol said.
Ysleta Station U.S. Border Patrol agents toss a “lifeline” to a migrant struggling in the waters of an irrigation canal parallel to the border wall on Aug. 19, 2024. It was one of 845 rescues of migrants in dire straits in the El Paso area since Oct. 1
And on Monday, it reminded people contemplating entering the U.S. illegally there will be legal consequences if they do it.
“The U.S. Border Patrol continues to enforce U.S. immigration law and applies consequences to those who do not have a legal basis to remain in the United States,” the agency said in an email to Border Report. “These consequences include placing individuals in expedited removal proceedings, allowing border agents to quickly repatriate individuals, referring criminal prosecution on migrants seeking to evade apprehension, repeat offenders, those with a criminal history and those involved in smuggling efforts.”
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Comments / 0