(Headline USA) U.S. Border Patrol admitted this week that it left flood gates along the southern border between Arizona and Mexico open, allowing thousands of migrants to illegally enter the country.
The flood gates are located in the Tuscon border sector, which has become the busiest in the country this year, with Border Patrol encountering 42,561 illegal immigrants in July alone. Despite these crossings, agents reportedly welded more than 100 gates along the border wall open to prevent anyone from closing them.
When pressed on who made the call to leave the gates open, Border Patrol acknowledged it “makes the final decision on opening gates based on operational conditions and forecasted weather,” according to the New York Post.
Customs and Border Protection claimed the gates have been left open because of Arizona’s annual monsoon season.
“High water flow combined with excessive sediment and debris buildup can stress or comprise the design integrity of the barrier,” the department said. “Once the rain or flood event is over and the debris and sediment are removed, the gates can be closed and secured.”
Drug cartels are reportedly taking advantage of the open route, as are illegal immigrants from all over the world. As many as 1,500 migrants per day from countries such as China, Egypt, and Central and South American countries are walking through the open gates.
“Those gates should never be open,” Brandon Judd, the president of the national Border Patrol union, said.
Judd said the agents who welded the gates open were acting on the orders of superiors, who should be “hammered” for not only letting migrants in, but also for endangering the lives of border agents, he added.
“Those gates should never open up. What would be the reason for it? Why would you do it?” he said.
