Texas City Declares State Of Emergency Over Border Crisis

El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser has declared a state of emergency due to the surge of unlawful border crossings ahead of the impending closure of Title 42 legislation, admitting he may need to use a nearby military base to house the overflow on his city’s streets.

“Our asylum seekers are not safe,” said Leeser at a press conference to announce the measure. “We have hundreds and hundreds on the street and that’s not the way we treat our people,” adding he had expected $6 million in federal funding to help tackle the crisis, even before declaring a state of emergency.

Public data shows that 80,000 - around 12% of the city’s entire population - have crossed in the last four months, while the past week alone has seen 2,400 per day, marking a 40% increase over October figures.