Inspector General Says, DHS Put Staff and Border Towns at Risk by Failing to Screen Migrants for COVID-19; ‘Nobody is Being Tested for Anything,’ Says Texas Sheriff at Migrant Bridge Camp

DHS put staff and border towns at risk by failing to screen migrants for COVID-19, inspector general says:

The Department of Homeland Security put migrants, staff, and border communities at greater risk of COVID-19 infection by failing to adequately screen migrants for the coronavirus, a government watchdog said in a newly released report.

“DHS leadership must commit to strengthening these COVID-19 preventative measures. Without stronger measures in place, DHS is putting its workforce, support staff, communities, and migrants at greater risk for contracting the virus,” the DHS Office of Inspector General wrote in a report released Wednesday.

The inspector general reviewed how federal law enforcement at the U.S.-Mexico border apprehended, detained, and released illegal immigrants from March through May.

The report comes as the situation at the southern border has grown worse since the investigation was completed in May. More than 200,000 people were encountered illegally crossing the border in August, the second-highest amount in 21 years. The migration surge has placed further strain on Customs and Border Protection holding facilities and local organizations tasked with testing more people than have ever before been released from custody at the border. --->READ MORE HERE

Photo: Randy Clark/Breitbart Texas

‘Nobody is Being Tested for Anything,’ Says Texas Sheriff at Migrant Bridge Camp:

Val Verde County Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez says the Biden administration is not testing any of the nearly 10,000 migrants being held in a makeshift border camp for COVID or anything else. He said they are alone at the border dealing with a national issue.

“Nobody is being tested for anything,” Sheriff Martinez told reporters during an interview near the Del Rio International Bridge where the Biden administration is holding nearly 10,000 migrants.

The Border Patrol is unable to even move the migrants into processing centers due to the massive numbers of border crossings. Currently, Border Patrol is holding nearly 10,000 people in the makeshift camp with inadequate staffing or supplies to take care of the migrants.

“My son is in the Border Patrol,” Martinez said. “I tell him to keep his head up and do his job.” He added that he worries about them doing a job that no one else would be willing to do.

“We’re alone down here dealing with a national issue,” the sheriff said about the current crisis that is underway in his county. “We feel abandoned.” --->READ MORE HERE

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