El Paso mayor warns city ‘at tipping point’ as immigrants overwhelm it

A wave of migrants crossing the U.S. border from Mexico has brought El Paso, Texas, to a “tipping point” with more than 2,000 people a day seeking asylum, overwhelming shelter capacity and straining resources, its mayor said Saturday.

“The City of El Paso has a limited amount of resources, and have we achieved that? this is a tipping point,” Democratic Mayor Oscar Lizer said at a news conference Saturday.

Lizer said the Border Patrol (CBP) is currently holding more than 6,500 migrants in its facilities. About 2,000 more people are waiting to be processed at Border Patrol Station 32 on the Mexican side.

Most immigrants come from Venezuela.

According to Leeser, only 1% of immigrants who come to El Paso do so to stay, and the vast majority intend to move to larger cities.

Immigrants wait in Ciudad Juarez for CBP processing in El Paso, Texas, September 21, 2023. /Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Lizer said at a news conference that about 66% of those crossing the border are single men, 32% are married couples and 2% are unaccompanied minors.

The exponential growth in the number of immigrants is prompting the city to open a shelter at the Nations-Tobin Sports Center in northeast El Paso. According to Border Report, Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino said they had to “clean up” the temporary shelter, which can currently house about 400 people.

Immigrants wait in Mexico for CBP processing in El Paso, Texas, on September 21, 2023.
Immigrants wait in Mexico for CBP processing in El Paso, Texas, on September 21, 2023. /Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Officials confirmed that the El Paso government is also working with the Texas Department of Emergency Management, which is providing charter buses to transport migrants to downtown centers.

Chief Emergency Management Coordinator Jorge Rodriguez assured that all migrants picked up by bus from El Paso do so voluntarily and must sign required documentation before boarding.

Exactly on Saturday, two busloads of immigrants departed for New York, two for Chicago and one for Denver.

According to EFE

Author: Maria Ortiz
Source: La Opinion

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