Washington – Texas state officials recently recovered the bodies of two migrants, including a 3-year-old child, who are believed to have drowned while attempting to cross the U.S. southern border. Illegal crossings have soared to near-record levels in recent days.
According to agency spokesperson Ericka Brown, the Texas Department of Public Safety located a 3-year-old migrant boy in the Rio Grande, near the border town of Eagle Pass, on Wednesday. Reports indicated that the child was swept away by the river’s current and was pronounced dead at a local hospital. It was later discovered that the toddler had been traveling with his family.
The following day, Texas state troopers in Eagle Pass observed another body submerged in the Rio Grande, as confirmed by Brown. The Maverick County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating the death.
Both bodies were found north of the floating barriers that Texas had set up in the Rio Grande to deter migrant crossings. A federal judge had previously ordered Texas to move the buoys to the riverbank, as a lawsuit filed by the Biden administration was likely to succeed in court. However, a federal appeals court temporarily paused the ruling, allowing Texas to maintain the marine barriers for now.
Democratic lawmakers, advocates, and the Biden administration have raised concerns that the buoys pose a danger to migrants, as they are forced to swim through deeper parts of the river where the risk of drowning is higher. However, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott argues that the barriers are necessary to discourage illegal entries, citing inadequate federal action to secure the southern border.
The recent tragic drownings highlight the life-threatening risks faced by migrants crossing into the U.S. In recent years, migrant deaths, particularly from heat exposure and drownings, have reached record highs along the southern border. The United Nations has even labeled it as “the deadliest land border” in the world.
According to internal agency data obtained by CBS News, U.S. Border Patrol recorded over 850 migrant deaths in fiscal year 2022, surpassing the 546 deaths in fiscal year 2021. However, officials believe these figures are likely an undercount due to incomplete data collection and recording methods. In a report earlier this year, a federal watchdog identified gaps in Border Patrol’s data on migrant deaths.
The rise in recorded deaths on the U.S.-Mexico border coincides with a surge in migrant crossings. Border Patrol recorded a record-breaking 2.2 million migrant apprehensions in fiscal year 2022. This trend is expected to continue in fiscal year 2023, which ends in September.
In recent weeks, there has been a notable increase in migrants, predominantly from Venezuela, crossing the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass. On average, about 6,900 southern border crossings occur daily in September.
The Biden administration announced on Wednesday that nearly half a million Venezuelans who arrived in the U.S. within the past two years will be eligible for the Temporary Protected Status program. This initiative provides work permits and deportation protections. However, the Venezuelans crossing the border this week will not qualify, as the expansion only applies to those who entered prior to July 31.
In the border city of Juarez, Mexico, located across from El Paso, CBS News witnessed numerous individuals taking the risk of crossing into the U.S. This included a group from Venezuela who used tree limbs as a makeshift bridge over the Rio Grande. Some of them fell into the water, struggling to protect their children and babies as they attempted to navigate the river.
— Manuel Bojorquez contributed reporting.
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