Mexico Feels Pressure of Relentless Migration From South America

At a Mexico City shelter, the nun in charge made another difficult announcement to the mothers and children arriving Wednesday: There was no more space. Five hundred migrants were already crammed into a facility built for 100.

Near Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala, frustrated people stormed a refugee aid office on Monday after waiting weeks for appointments to receive the necessary documents that allow them to travel farther north.

And in Tijuana, nearly all of the city’s 32 shelters were at full capacity this week, as people from nearly 70 countries waited for a U.S. asylum appointment or a chance to sneak across the border.

Similar scenes are playing out across the country as Mexico’s immigration system strains under a tide of people desperately trying to go north. The relentless surge has led to a hodgepodge response in Mexico ranging from shutting down railways heading north to the busing of people to areas with fewer migrants.

American officials are also contending with a new wave of unlawful border crossings that is straining government resources and leaving local officials scrambling as thousands of migrants are released from federal custody. On Wednesday, thousands of people crossed into Eagle Pass, Texas, leading the mayor to declare a state of emergency and a deployment of 800 active-duty military personnel to help process the arrivals.