Ranchers sound alarm on new migrant crossing hotspot
Ranchers along the southern border are sounding the alarm on a terrifying new hotspot where migrant crossings are exploding. The vast and remote Big Bend area of Texas is now so busy with illegal migrant crossings that it's been described as 'hotbed' been called a 'hotbed' by Congressman Tony Gonzales. 'What I'm hearing from my ranchers is that, for everyone else, they've gotten relief, but that area—the Big Bend Sector—continues to be a hotbed in particular,' Rep. Gonzales said during a Capitol Hill hearing Thursday.
Unlike the rest of the US-Mexico boundary, where migrant encounters have plummeted , Big Bend is seeing higher numbers than it did when Pres. Joe. Biden was in office, according to federal statistics by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP.) In October, 291 encounters with illegal immigrants were reported by US Border Patrol. Last month, under Trump, that number shot up to 324. The numbers might seem low, but what's more concerning is who is not being caught.
The sheriff who's in charge of 91 miles of Big Bend told DailyMail.com he knows others are successfully sneaking into the country here. 'We have been stumbling onto groups from out west (that) we didn't know they crossed, and while tracking other groups, came across their sign (footprints,' Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland, also a retired Border Patrol agent, told DM. Traditionally, migrants have avoided this sector, opting for easier entries in urban zones.
'Some nights we don't apprehend anyone. Then we might have a group of 10 or so that week,' Cleveland explained of what is usual. In recent weeks, the sheriff's office has aided the Border Patrol agents in tracking down as many as 60 people in one week--often dressed in camouflaged garments given to them by smugglers to help them blend in with the terrain. Big Bend has been a low-traffic region traditionally because it's so rugged and absent of big cities on either side of the international boundary.
To get into the US, migrants have to cross the Rio Grande river with fast-flowing water and rapids. If they make it over successfully, they have to immediately scale cliffs-- a task that can take a day or two. After that, it takes at least three to four days to walk to the nearest town, Sanderson. There are no roads in this isolated desert where the possibility of breaking a leg, getting bit by a snake and being abandoned by the cartel smuggling guide is high for migrants.
If they reach the 700-person town, they can access the highways where smugglers are waiting to pick up the illegal immigrants and drive them to their next destination inside the US. Big Bend is also sandwiched between two big hot spots: El Paso, currently the busiest entry point , to the West and Del Rio to the East. 'As other parts of the border receive more resources, it will force people out this way,' the sheriff added.
Most of the people making illegal entry here are Mexican citizens on their way to the fields of California to pick America's produce, Cleveland stated. Since Trump took over in January, two Army Stryker tanks have been stationed there. However, the area is just too big, with 91 miles of border between just two counties. There's only 50 federal immigration agents stationed in Sanderson, plus another 15 on loan from other parts of the agency.
'Is there anything that we can do to alleviate some of their high foot traffic,' Rep. Gonzales pressed CBP Commissioner Pete Flores during the congressional hearing. As part of his response, the top dog at CBP admitted the Border Patrol has more manpower than ever before. 'We continue to plan for where we see problem spots or hot spots along the border, and we continue to re-evaluate how we're deploying our agents,' Flores responded. Sheriff Cleveland believes more boots on the ground is the solution. 'What is needed is technology and even more important, more men and women with badges,' he said.
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