Mexican Hospital Overrun by COVID-19 Closes Near Busiest U.S. Crossing in Arizona

COVID-19 is spreading like wildfire in Mexican cities along the United States border yet transit between the countries has increased dramatically, flouting State Department travel restrictions issued to keep the virus from spreading.

A few weeks ago Judicial Watch reported that southern border crossings are hotbeds of traffic that are jeopardizing the health of federal agents charged with screening the influx and potentially spreading the virus to American communities. The problem is only getting worse, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sources, who say traffic is so bad that wait times in some crossings can take up to six hours. That is because thousands in border states, especially Arizona, are taking daily jaunts to Mexico to have lunch or dinner, shop, visit family and get haircuts in the middle of the pandemic. Many return to the U.S. the same day, creating a gridlock that must be screened by CBP officers.

In the Mexican city of Sonora, near the southwest Arizona town of San Luis, COVID-19 is so rampant that an overwhelmed hospital was shut down not far from the jam-packed San Luis border crossing. Mexican media reports that a nurse died at the facility, Hospital de San Luis Rio Colorado, and more than 30 doctors and nurses are sick with the virus. At least 20 doctors may also be infected. Nevertheless, the San Luis crossing remains among the busiest along the southern border, with consistently lengthy wait times. “It’s crazy busy,” said veteran CBP agent Patricia Cramer, who also serves as president of the Arizona chapter of the agency’s employee union.

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