A group of Cubans were caught on video crossing the dangerous Rio Grande through the town of Piedras Negras in northeastern Mexico.
In the material that Impacto Visión Noticias circulates on its Facebook page, the reporter can be heard shouting: “Be careful with the children.” The group was made up of about thirty Cubans, including men, women and minors.
“They arrive in the United States all together, not even the current (of the river) can take them,” explains the journalist while capturing the images of the moment.
Messages from Cubans crossing the Rio Grande are becoming more common. Thousands of islanders venture into the North American country every day.
In recent weeks, local media have reported the deaths of several Cubans en route to the United States.
One of the most recent cases is that of young Atkinson Waterman Torrens Nacimiento, 24 years old and a native of Remedios, Villa Clara province.
The young man had lost contact with his family since March 13 and his body was found in the Rio Grande five days later.
Days earlier, they had reported the deaths of a father and his son at the dangerous crossing. The man, around 50, and the young man, 18, drowned.
On Wednesday, March 9th, the wife and young son of a Cuban man died trying to cross the same state of Coahuila.
Cuban Guillermo Alan Matos, 33, lost his Uruguayan wife Alessa Nadines Patiño Rivero, 25, and their son Ismael, four, when they tried to cross to the United States so the little boy could be treated for a diagnosed brain tumor.
The Cuban reported that the current swept them in the river and he managed to get out, but the rest of his family were swept away.
The number of Cubans crossing the Mexican border to the United States each day has hit record numbers in recent months.
This week, the United States Border Patrol (CBP) alerted the Joe Biden administration to the proliferation of immigrants being arrested daily along the southern border with Mexico, including Cubans.
An article by the AP agency collects this on Monday 1500 Cubans crossed the bordera record number compared to the daily average reported since February.
“Probably in the next two or three days we will have more than a million encounters or arrests along the southwestern border,” Raúl Ortiz, head of the CBP, told the above media.
“Border Protection is understaffed and faces additional challenges due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and all sectors are busier than in 2021,” the official added.
Corey Price, director of enforcement and deportation operations at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the agency has about 21,000 detention beds. Even if you emptied your beds, they could be packed with new arrivals this weekend.
“The agency is increasingly considering house arrest and other alternatives,” he said.
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