How Border Patrol Handles The Immigrant Children Streaming Into Texas

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

The majority of the minors seeking asylum cross through the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. NPR's John Burnett is there this week. He joins us to tell us about the huge volume of kids crossing the border and about the conditions where some of them are now being detained. And John, you're in the city of Harlingen. What are you hearing?

JOHN BURNETT, BYLINE: Audie, no one has ever seen anything like this before. Even 25 years ago, when Central Americans were fleeing the civil wars and coming to South Texas asking for amnesty, no one has seen the numbers they're seeing now. I spoke to a border patrol agent earlier today. He said that the migrants, they're crossing illegally along the river. Earlier today, there was a group of 59 who surrendered. Last week a group of 250 came over in rafts provided by the smugglers and then they surrendered to border patrol agents. And no one has seen so many kids. They say around a third of the arrivals are unaccompanied children. I spoke to a border patrol agent this morning, he told me the average age he sees is 12 to 14 years old. But on Monday, he saw a six- year-old girl caring for her four-year-old little brother who had a fever. They were completely alone. The border patrol is rushing in agents from all over the Southwest to help out. And they're frustrated because it takes so many resources to receive and process all these migrants. It takes them away from their primary duty which is patrolling the border.
http://wvpublic.org/post/how-border-patrol-handles-immigrant-children-streaming-texas