Four people familiar with the complex situation, and the Biden administration's bad response, said the photos underscore the danger the migrants, border officials and the remote community of Yuma are living under amid the border crisis.
Between September and November, over 65,000 illegal immigrants were caught crossing into Yuma from Mexico, a number higher than encounters in an average year. Above 1,500 people were in custody at one point this week, according to Rafa Rivera, regional president of the National Border Patrol Council.
Those in custody are always discharged, meaning either released into the United States, returned to their home country, or simply pushed back into Mexico within a day or two of being taken into custody.
The surge has only grown in December, but the severity of it is unknown because U.S. Customs and Border Protection has not yet released apprehension numbers for the month.
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On Dec. 9, Yuma Mayor Douglas Nicholls declared a state of emergency after over 6,000 people were taken into custody by Border Patrol in five days, which is as many as have been caught in an average month over the past 20 years.
The Border Patrol's three holding stations throughout the Yuma region are filled with people, as well as its outdoor tent, which has been filled with occupants for months. Migrants arriving at the border are increasingly coming from countries further away than Central America, including Russia, Afghanistan, Georgia, Cuba, Brazil, and Haiti. Those who are detained in the tent sleep on the ground with little to no space between them.
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Hallways inside another part of the tent are packed with adults, parents, children, and babies. Some people choose to wear masks, while many others do not. Rivera said the situation inside and outside has compromised federal public health protocols at a time when COVID infections are at peak levels nationwide.
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"[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines go out the window because we're so overcrowded," said Rivera, local president for the National Border Patrol Council.
Rivera said infections among agents are constant, however, the Border Patrol does not know how widespread the virus is among detainees because those in custody are never tested.
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