That chronology, provided by government officials, underscores how stretched the facilities and their staff are in handling the surge in Central American families reaching the southwest border, particularly minors.
Kirstjen Nielsen, secretary of homeland security, acknowledged Wednesday that the “dramatic increase” had pushed the system to “a breaking point.”
She said she had ordered her agency to bolster medical screenings of children at the southwest border and had enlisted the medical corps of the U.S. Coast Guard to assist. The secretary also said that she would travel to the border this week to personally observe the screenings.
The secretary placed the blame on an immigration system that she said rewarded parents for sending their children to cross the border alone and brought few consequences for parents who bring their children with them into the country.
Democratic lawmakers pushed back Wednesday. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, speaker-designate of the House, deemed the death of two children in U.S. custody “unconscionable” and called on Congress to investigate.
The boy, who had entered the United States with his father, was identified by Guatemalan authorities as Felipe Gomez Alonso. Nearly three weeks earlier, Jakelin Caal Maquin, also traveling with her father, died in Border Patrol custody.
After the two deaths and amid an apparent spread of illnesses, U.S. officials have requested the help of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate a spike in the number of migrants arriving sick at the border.
The American Association of Pediatrics recommended in a report last year that children not be detained in the border facilities commonly known as “hieleras,” Spanish for “iceboxes,” because of the typically low temperature inside.
“The conditions might make children ill or make their conditions worse, if they are already ill,” said Colleen Kraft, president of the association.
Customs and Border Protection officials Wednesday outlined a series of steps they plan to take in the aftermath of the deaths of the two children, including securing help from Immigration and Customs Enforcement to alleviate capacity issues that have kept migrants in its facilities for extended time.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.