By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
The migrant encampment under the Del Rio International Bridge is empty.
Del Rio Mayor Bruno “Ralphy” Lozano made the announcement during a press conference outside the border fence near the encampment at 12:30 p.m. Friday.
“As of right now, there were zero persons under the bridge. It appears that they have all been transported to other locations, which is phenomenal news. The outstanding work that Border Patrol, Customs and Border Protection, different agencies from the state, the county and the city have been here to facilitate the needs. We also had the volunteer food kitchen which is now winding down their services in the community,” Lozano said at the start of the press event.
He said officials now will begin assessing both the physical site of the former migrant camp and intelligence of the situation with an eye toward reopening the international bridge that links Del Rio with Ciudad Acuña, Coah., Mexico.
“One of the big pressing questions is the timing of the reopening of the international bridge. Unfortunately, right now it doesn’t look like they will be immediately reopening it, just because of the amount of resources that are still down there (at the camp site),” Lozano said.
“They . . . (also) need to properly assess if there’s another incident that might be on its way. We’re not saying that it is; they just need to assess within their own intelligence,” the mayor added.
In the next phase, equipment and manpower will be moving “and making sure the environment around the bridge is clean.”
“They’ve already picked up an exorbitant amount of trash, diapers, who knows what else down there, but they need to also assess the environment due to the human relief that was being conducted as well,” he said.
Lozano said security has been posted on the U.S. side of the small weir dam many migrants had used to cross the Rio Grande.
After making his statement, the mayor fielded questions from media members.
The first reporter, speaking in Spanish, asked about the financial loss incurred by the city because of the continued closure of the bridge and its attendant federal port of entry.
“The amount of financial loss is roughly, just from the tolls alone, is about $17,000 a day, and there is about $35 million in trade that crosses either way on any given day,” Lozano said, adding the city is in the process of determining the exact amount of lost revenue, both to the businesses on either side of the border and to the city itself, which owns the bridge.
Lozano said he expected the bridge would reopen with 48 to 96 hours.
One reporter asked the mayor how the Del Rio community would deal with continued migrant crossings in the future.
Lozano said he and other local officials had been “sounding the alarm” regarding sharp increases in migrant crossings for months and years.
“Especially this year, considering the significant increase in crossings. I have been in direct communication with (Department of Homeland Security) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to pass along any concerns that I have and working with the DHS staff, and I can assure the community that I now have that direct relationship now established to make sure that whatever I find is transmitted effectively,” Lozano said.
“If there is something urgent that is happening, like this event, which began about 11 days ago, I’ll have that relationship firmly established so that, hopefully, nothing like this ever happens again,” he added.
Lozano said he has also spoken to the mayors of other border towns to share information.
Another reporter asked if there had been any deaths of migrants in the camp.
“Miraculously, there have been no deaths. I’m very proud of the work of the federal agents who provided medical care and urgent response. I can tell you that there were approximately 10 births, either on-site or after transport to our local hospital, so we’ve actually welcomed life out of all of this, despite the circumstances,” Lozano replied.
Lozano also thanked Gov. Greg Abbott for sending hundreds of Texas Department of Public Safety troopers.
Another reporter asked when the migrant camp would be considered closed.
Lozano replied there are still reports of large groups of migrants in Monterrey, N.L., Mexico, a city about 295 miles south of Ciudad Acuña.
“It’s my understanding that they are monitoring that population. I can’t answer to what the Mexican government is doing specifically. I can answer that the Border Patrol is ready to respond and relocate their resources as needed,” Lozano said.
Asked how many migrants he had heard are in Monterrey, Lozano said he did not know for sure.
“I’ve heard anywhere from 10,000 to upwards of 30,000. It’s my understanding there are a couple of groups moving,” he replied.
A KWMC reporter asked Lozano what message he had for the Del Rio community.
“We’ve been through a lot. We’ve been through a lot of crises, and I can tell you I’m very proud to call the city of Del Rio home. I’m very proud to have grown up here. I’m very proud of our community, of how we come together in times of need,” Lozano said.
“The city of Del Rio has been nothing but welcoming to law enforcement, who has been providing us with the security we need to allow the Border Patrol to do their mission, and I have been in contact with many volunteers who want to help the Haitians under the bridge . . . I look at it as we are nothing but givers in times of need, and I can only hope that translates to the rest of the country. Divisiveness is not going to get us anywhere,” he added.
A reporter from San Antonio asked the mayor how he is “bracing himself” for future migrant influxes and wanted to know what major lesson he had learned from the situation now winding down.
“I don’t think I would have done anything different because you try to do things you were elected to do and go up the chain of command to sound the alarm, but when that alarm isn’t being heard, you have to break out and go directly to the top. Now having experienced what I’ve experienced, I’m prepared to make those same tough calls and call on those individuals who need to respond to protect the community,” Lozano said.
“Del Rio, Texas, is an American community and we have every obligation to protect it, but we also have every obligation to protect every individual, regardless of status, humanely,” he added.
Lozano also called on the U.S. Congress to unite and take action on immigration policy “so American communities like ours are properly protected and everyone is treated humanely.”
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