DEL RIO, Texas — A source within CBP provided Breitbart Texas new video depicting the unsanitary conditions agents and detainees are subjected to at a makeshift camp under the local international bridge. The camp, as of Wednesday, houses more than 4,000 mostly Haitian migrants. The site is used as a temporary detention area due to facility overcrowding in the area. The location is expected to swell to 5,000 inhabitants by the end of the day.
The source, not authorized to speak to the media, says the Border Patrol is not properly equipped to deal with the situation using standard resources. The video shows an area near the camp littered with human excrement. The portable restrooms are not sufficient for the growing crowd size. The number of migrants being held in the camp has risen by more than 1,000 since Tuesday.
The source says the six portable restrooms at the camp are not enough for more than 4,000 people to use. A water tank on site is not sufficient for bathing or hand washing. The source says agents must stand watch over the migrants and there are growing concerns about health issues that may arise due to the unsanitary conditions.
Valverde County Judge Lewis Owens spoke to Breitbart Texas about the issue and voiced similar concerns. The judge says the small community of Del Rio is still dealing with COVID-19 issues and the local hospital is not equipped to deal with a major communicable disease outbreak, should one occur.
The brief video shows the entire span of the international bridge. According to County Judge Owens, a local non-government organization (NGO) shelter coordinated the release of 3,600 mostly Haitian migrants from the Border Patrol in August alone.
“The NGO and local hospital have tested some of the released migrants and have discovered HIV, TB and COVID-19 on several occasions, the federal government is not doing the testing,” Owens explained.
The makeshift camp sits on U.S. Customs and Border Protection property beyond the border fence and is not accessible or visible to the public. The detainees at the camp are not on any official detention rolls and have not been booked into official processing programs.
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.