Migrants brave freezing temperatures, struggle to secure travel out of El Paso

Meybol Martinez slept outside overnight near Union Plaza with six siblings and cousins. She clutched a coffee bought at the gas station nearby and shivered under a pile of donated blankets. The Nicaraguan nationals turned themselves over to U.S. customs officers at the Paso del Norte bridge on Thursday, she said, then were processed and released. They want to head to Miami, where they have family members to receive them. “There are no bus tickets,” she said. Migrants from Nicaragua, Colombia and Ecuador crowded sidewalks Downtown El Paso overnight. Many said they had the means to buy bus tickets, or had a ticket in hand, but would have to wait days for the next bus to Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Dallas, New York and Newark, New Jersey.

Customs and Border Protection has released hundreds of migrants to city streets each day this week, with the non-profit and shelter system at capacity. Ports of entry have mostly been closed to asylum seekers under Title 42, a public health protocol by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under the Trump administration beginning in March 2020. Many of the people arriving to El Paso currently are from countries like Nicaragua where the U.S. cannot expel them. With Title 42 set to be lifted on Tuesday, Dec. 21, the city is preparing for even higher numbers of arrivals. Mayor Oscar Leeser said Thursday that the city was providing transportation to shelter and hotels but that some migrants had declined the support. "We’ve seen the pictures when they get off and are out on the street," he said. "But if you come back in the night like I do, you'll see they’re not on the street any longer." "Last night I was out there… you’ll see there are some people out there," he said. "We’ve talked to them. We’ve asked them to get on the bus so we can provide shelter for them.... We don’t want to see people out on the street."