McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will travel to the South Texas town of Uvalde with the head of the U.S. Border Patrol on Wednesday, DHS officials said.
Mayorkas and Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens are to receive operational updates from Border Patrol agents and other U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials in Uvalde.
The meetings are closed to media, DHS officials said in a statement.
Uvalde is about 50 miles from the Mexican border and is where 19 children and two teachers were killed in May 2022 in what has been the deadliest school shooting in Texas history.
Reggie Daniels pays his respects a memorial at Robb Elementary School on June 9, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. The mass shooting left 21 people dead at the elementary school, the deadliest school shooting in Texas history (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File Photo)
The town is about 58 miles from Eagle Pass, Texas, which currently is experiencing a surge in migrants crossing illegally from Piedras Negras, Mexico.
On Monday, DHS officials temporarily closed traffic at Bridge 1 — one of the two international bridges in Eagle Pass — so that border law enforcement could be sent to help process the migrants under Bridge 2.
A similar shutdown occurred in late September and lasted nearly a month, causing the city to lose over $500,000 in bridge revenue, city officials said.
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.
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