EAGLE PASS, Texas (NewsNation) — The unprecedented surge of migrants crossing illegally into Texas’ southern border is straining emergency services in Eagle Pass.
The Eagle Pass Fire Department is equipped with only five ambulances covering 1,200 square miles. The majority of its calls now involve migrants requiring medical attention, doubling the department’s average daily response to 30 calls.
Firefighters are often tasked with recovering the bodies of migrants who have drowned in the Rio Grande, a grim task that is also on the rise.
Within just a few hours on Wednesday, NewsNation witnessed two migrants on stretchers being taken to an ambulance.
The fire department has spent over $500,000 on more than 800 migrant-related calls for help.
Local officials express concern that this trend may escalate, potentially costing them millions.
Meanwhile, Border Patrol agents are outnumbered 200 to 1, with more than 5,000 migrants currently in custody. Thousands more are waiting to be processed and there are no signs that the surge is slowing down.
A video from Rep Tony Gonzales, R-TX, shows the overcrowded processing facility in Eagle Pass, originally designed for 1,000 migrants but currently houses nearly 6,000.
At the end of the video, a hand is seen attempting to block the camera; Gonzales alleges that a DHS official tried to stop him from filming.
Border Patrol sources told NewsNation that agents have already encountered more than 200,000 migrants in December. The current trend is poised to break the record for the most illegal crossings in a single month.