Children in Border Patrol custody surpasses 3,700 amid ongoing surge
The number of unaccompanied migrant children in Border Patrol custody continues to climb, reaching more than 3,700 on Wednesday, many of them in jail-like facilities along the US-Mexico border, CNN has learned.
On Wednesday, Border Patrol apprehended nearly 700 unaccompanied migrant children, according to a Customs and Border Protection official, signaling an ongoing spike in encounters of children and surpassing the current 450 daily average.
Last week, the daily average was 340 children apprehended by US Border Patrol.
As officials scramble to find shelter space for children, kids are staying in Border Patrol custody for prolonged periods of time, averaging more than four days.
More than 100 children have been in custody for around 10 days, CNN has learned. A week ago, the average time was 77 hours.
Border facilities are “absolutely” overcrowded, a senior DHS official said. As of Wednesday, US Customs and Border Protection was overcapacity in 7 out of the 9 Border Patrol sectors, the official said, adding that Yuma, Rio Grande Valley and Del Rio were “severely overcapacity.”
The Covid-19 pandemic has further constrained the space available to migrants in custody.
Typically, after being taken into Border Patrol custody, unaccompanied children have to be turned over within 72 hours to the Department of Health and Human Services, which is tasked with the care of migrant children, barring exceptional circumstances.
On Wednesday, CBP announced it had encountered just over 100,000 migrants along the US-Mexico border in February, reaching levels not seen since 2019.
“[W]e continue to struggle with the number of individuals in our custody, especially given the pandemic,” said Troy Miller, the senior official performing the duties of the CBP commissioner, during a press briefing Wednesday.
The border agency is working with HHS to move children out of custody as quickly as possible, said Miller.
“We need to move them out quicker,” he acknowledged.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
