A second temporary facility is being built to hold undocumented immigrants as the influx keeps coming over the southwestern border of the US, according to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). On Wednesday, CBP announced that it is constructing a new facility in Donna, Texas, next door to the Donna-Rio Bravo International Bridge. It will be capable of holding up to 500 immigrants.
The facility will allow officials to hold undocumented immigrants in detention while they wait for the transfer to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be processed, detained and/or removed from the US, according to Customs and Border Patrol. The first ‘temporary’ facility, in Tornillo, Texas is the same capacity and was announced by CBP less than two weeks ago.
A new influx of illegal immigration is causing the need for new space, with border apprehensions now between 7000 and 10,000 higher than is the norm per month, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Customs and Border Patrol say the temporary facilities will stay open until the flood of undocumented immigrants falls to more normal levels.
The Wednesday announcement also saw Customs and Border Patrol indicate that the creation of further temporary facilities could be on the cards. In October, which was the first month of the 2017 fiscal year, 46,195 undocumented immigrants were apprehended. This is a rise of almost 10,000 on the figures for October 2014.