Closure and Partial Closing of TX and AZ Border Crossings to Vehicles

https://www.borderreport.com/immigration/cbp-south-texas-arizona-border-crossings-to-close-due-to-migrant-surges/

IMMIGRATION
CBP: South Texas border crossing to close due to migrant surges
by: Sandra Sanchez

Posted: Nov 27, 2023 / 02:56 PM CST
Updated: Nov 27, 2023 / 03:19 PM CST

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — An international bridge in South Texas will be temporarily closed to vehicular traffic from Mexico starting Monday afternoon, and a border crossing in Arizona will reduce vehicle processing due to surges of migrants in the region, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials announced.

Bridge 1 in Eagle Pass, Texas, will be closed to vehicles starting at 3 p.m. CT, according to a statement by CBP.

At 2 p.m. local time, vehicle processing will be reduced at the border crossing in Lukeville, Arizona.

The closures will be “in order to redirect personnel to assist the U.S. Border Patrol with taking migrants into custody. In response to this influx in encounters, we will continue to surge all available resources to expeditiously and safely process migrants,” CBP said in a statement on Monday.

Bridge 1 in Eagle Pass is the same port of entry that was closed for several weeks starting in late September after thousands of asylum-seekers — most from Venezuela — overwhelmed border officials in the South Texas town across from Piedras Negras, Mexico.

Upwards of 10,000 migrants per day illegally crossed the Rio Grande into Eagle Pass, causing law enforcement to close Bridge 1 so they could process the migrants under Bridge 2.

The closures to vehicular traffic lasted nearly a month and prompted local officials and Mexican authorities to rally federal officials to open the bridge in order to restore trade and commerce and to allow citizens to cross back and forth for medical visits and to see families.

The first bridge closures cost the city at least $500,000 in trade and cargo traffic, Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas Jr., said.

Amerika Garcia-Grewal, an Eagle Pass resident who founded a monthly vigil to honor migrant victims who died in the river, told Border Report that closing the bridge isn’t necessary. She said more federal agents should be brought to the region so that processing of asylum-seekers under Bridge 2 could continue without disruption to traffic at Bridge 1, which is about a mile east.

“If we had a comprehensive immigration mission and strategy where we had a specific number of officers here to process asylum-seekers then this would not happen. So the fact that they’re closing the bridge shows a failure on the part of our federal administration to do their job,” Garcia-Grewal told Border Report on Monday.

The border crossing in Lukeville, Arizona, is not open to pedestrian traffic, according to CBP, but will reduce vehicle processing in Lukeville, Arizona.

The rural port of entry is located in the desert and connects south of Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument to the Mexican town of Sonoyta.

The next closest port of entry is in Sasabe, Arizona, which is nearly 170 miles away.

“In response to this influx in encounters, we will continue to surge all available resources to expeditiously and safely process migrants. We will maximize consequences against those without a legal basis to remain in the United States. CBP will continue to prioritize our border security mission as necessary in response to this evolving situation,” CBP said in a statement.

UPDATE ON LUKEVILLE CROSSING:  The Lukeville border is going to be totally shutdown on Dec. 4th

This isn't big news for most Lakesiders though Lukeville was a viable route and used by some Californians, almost a 'secret' crossing as it was never crowded and was a low key easy crossing.

It IS a big deal for Arizonans who head to Puerto Peñasco beaches on the Gulf of California.  Many from Phoenix and Tucson own 2nd homes there as it's an easy 3.5 hour drive from either.  It's known colloquially as Arizona's Beach.  There's even a beach there named Tucson Beach.

The alternatives to get to Puerto Peñasco means 100's of miles of detours via Nogales or San Luis (near Yuma) and makes it a 6.5 to 7 hour drive.  

UPDATE ON EAGLE PASS:  TX a-hole Gov. Abbot has instituted complete mandatory searches of every truck crossing at Eagle Pass.  It's unnecessary as there are sophisticated sensors of all sorts that scan every load, but Abbot wants to slow MX commercial traffic coming into his state.  

Abbot is at the same time rounding up migrants who have been processed and released by Border Security and sending them by busloads to cold northern cities as winter starts, namely Chicago and NY.  

Interesting.. today, I took a taxi from McAllen, TX to Reynosa airport, via the Pharr bridge (one of three in Rio Grande Valley).  When I booked the VivaAerobus flight to GDL from REX I had NO IDEA of the expense of this 45 minute/18 mile trip.. But to point, I have never seen the security & size like this border crossing.. the miles of double lane semi-trucks (with food, my driver said) coming into the USA - 10:30 am, Saturday morning.  The facilities, expanse of bridge infrastructure, personnel into Mexico was so much larger than Laredo, Eagle Pass or Columbia.. My driver said it would take her 3 to 5 hours to get back into USA.. due to intense security & vehicle back-up, esp. on weekends.  So the $100 USD taxi ride is related to the 3-5 hour re-entry time. (I called my mex friend w family in McAllen to confirm this was actually the price - I couldn't believe it.)  I don't mean to hi-jack the post, but this border crossing into USA is harshest I've seen, yet somehow 'unawful' persons are still overwhelming churches, migrant-aid organizations in the RGV.. Still processing my experience, including the 'boom town' feel of McAllen during my visit..

Thanks for the update. I’ve used that route often in the past and had no idea that things had gotten so bad. Now I just do SAT-GDL flights