Biden administration to open migrant holding facility in Pecos, TX

PECOS, Texas (KOSA) - The Biden administration announced Saturday it will open a migrant holding facility in Pecos, TX.

The facility will initially house 500 unaccompanied migrants with the ability to hold up to 2,000.

In an interview with Fox News on Saturday, Rep. Tony Gonzalez said, “I got notified about an hour ago from HHS that they’re opening up a new unaccompanied minor facility in Pecos, which is in my district, out in West Texas.”

In a press release, Gov. Gregg Abbott said, “The Biden Administration continues to show that it is dangerously unprepared to handle the surge in illegal border crossings as they rush to open yet another facility for unaccompanied minors in Texas. I have directed the Texas Commission On Environmental Quality to immediately look into the facility’s access to potable water. They are continuing to look into conditions in the Midland facility, where water was determined to be unusable for consumption.”

The Pecos site comes one day after the federal government announced it would no longer transport migrants to the Midland facility due to many migrants testing positive for COVID-19.

“As this humanitarian crisis grows along our southern border, the Biden Administration continues to dodge questions that Texans are demanding answers for: Is the federal government tracking what countries these children are coming from and what COVID-19 variants they might have been exposed to,” Abbott said. “How long will these children be held in Texas? The Biden Administration’s refusal to secure our border, investigate the origins and potential trafficking of unaccompanied minors, and protect these vulnerable children will only worsen the situation and put innocent lives at risk. President Biden must act now to end this crisis.”

We will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.