2 children, woman die in Rio Grande as feds, Texas debate border control

Two children and a woman died trying to cross the Rio Grande on Friday near a Texas park where state officials have blocked access to federal Border Patrol officers.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed the deaths Saturday night to USA TODAY. But Texas officials on Sunday called the claims "wholly inaccurate." The migrants were already dead when Border Patrol requested access, according to a Texas Military Department statement.

Border Patrol officers learned around 9 p.m. Friday that migrants were in distress as they tried to cross the river separating the U.S. and Mexico near Eagle Pass' Shelby Park, according to a Texas congressman.

The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the three who died were Mexican people trying to cross to the U.S. but didn't make it.

Since last week, Texas officials, under orders from Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, have prevented federal officials from entering a stretch of border that includes the 47-acre city park that's become a focal point in the broader border control debate amid increases in crossings.

"In responding to a distress call from the Mexican government, Border Patrol agents were physically barred by Texas officials from entering the area," the DHS statement said. "The Texas governor’s policies are cruel, dangerous and inhumane, and Texas’s blatant disregard for federal authority over immigration poses grave risks. The State of Texas should stop interfering with the U.S. Border Patrol’s enforcement of U.S. law.”

Feds, Texas dispute events that led to deaths

DHS said Mexican officials alerted the Border Patrol about migrants in distress. Later, officials in Mexico recovered the three bodies and rescued two migrants from the group who had signs of hypothermia, according to DHS.

In a statement posted to the social media site X, Rep. Henry Cuellar, a moderate Democrat whose Texas district is southeast of the park, first announced the deaths. Cuellar, citing Mexican sources, said the three migrants were a family, a mother with an 8-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son.

Cuellar blamed Abbott's policies. In 2021, Abbott launched "Operation Lone Star" to use state resources to stop migrant crossings. The personnel at Shelby Park are part of the state's latest actions.

"This is a tragedy, and the state bears responsibility," Cuellar said.

The Texas Military Department said via email Saturday that Border Patrol contacted state soldiers about migrants in distress at 9 p.m., but the state agency denied seeing any migrants in the river, turning back migrants attempting to cross unlawfully or finding bodies on the U.S. side at Shelby Park.

A unit near the park's boat ramp searched the river with lights and night vision goggles but found no migrants, the state agency said in a statement. At 9:45 p.m., the statement said, state soldiers saw Mexican authorities responding to an incident on the Mexican side of the river. Border Patrol told the state soldiers they didn't need additional assistance, according to the statement. The Texas Military Department then stopped the search.

"TMD maintains water rescue equipment and actively works with local EMS to aid migrants needing medical care," the statement said.

In a follow-up statement on Sunday, Texas officials said they investigated the drownings and disputed the claims that Border Patrol alerted state officials about migrants in distress and attempted to access the park to get them. State officials didn't deny blocking entry to Shelby Park.

"Soldiers confirmed that when Border Patrol requested access to the park they stated that Mexican Authorities had already recovered the bodies of two drowned migrants," the Texas Military Department statement said.

Texas officials said the Border Patrol specifically requested access to the park to secure two other migrants presumed to have been traveling with the three who had died but made it across to Shelby Park's boat ramp. State personnel apprehended the two, turning one over to the state Department of Public Safety and another to EMS for hypothermia.

In refuting Cuellar's account, Abbott laid blame on Democratic President Joe Biden.

"When (Border Patrol) requested access to river the drownings had already occurred & found in (Mexico)," Abbott said in a post on X Sunday. "The fact is the deaths are (because) of Biden's Open Border magnet."

Cuellar didn't deny the state investigated and searched for migrants, but he said Border Patrol couldn't investigate the deaths and hasn't been given access to the area since last week. Federal, state and local partners must work together to handle increases in migrants at the border, he said.

Texas seizes city park near where migrants drowned

In court filings, the state acknowledged it has seized control of Shelby Park for “law-enforcement and disaster relief purposes.”

Texas officials said they hadn’t been aware of the federal government’s complaints about access and are “working promptly to address them.”

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Grupo Beta, an aid organization with the Mexican government, and the Mexican National Guard recovered the woman and children, according to the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement on Sunday. Two others, both Mexican, were rescued by Mexican officials.

On Friday, the city of Eagle Pass issued a warning for cold weather in the area. Air temperatures hovered in the mid-40s Friday night.

Abbott's office did not respond to questions, nor did U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, the Republican congressman who represents Eagle Pass.

Court fight, cease-and-desist over border control

Texas and the Biden administration are embroiled in a court battle about who has jurisdiction over the Eagle Pass park. The Justice Department told the Supreme Court on Friday that the state has prevented the Border Patrol from being able to determine whether a migrant in that area needs emergency aid.

Fencing is restricting access to the Eagle Pass park, which contains a staging area for the Border Patrol and the boat ramp from which patrol boats are launched, the federal government said in requesting on Jan. 2 that the Supreme Court take on the case.

"Texas’s new actions since the government’s filing demonstrate an escalation of the State’s measures to block Border Patrol’s ability to patrol or even to surveil the border and be in a position to respond to emergencies," U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar wrote.

On Sunday, the DHS issued a cease-and-desist letter to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to stop blocking Border Patrol's access. Federal lawyers said Texas is violating federal law, and the three deaths highlight Texas' failure to provide access even when danger is present.

DHS ordered Texas officials to stop blocking access and to remove the barriers by Wednesday or they will refer the matter to the Department of Justice "for appropriate action and consider all other options available to restore Border Patrol’s access to the border," the letter said.

Crosses in park

While the most recent deaths highlight the inability of Americans to care for migrants in distress, deaths aren't new to the border community. Earlier Saturday, a group called Border Vigil Eagle Pass held a rally in Shelby Park to remember those who previously lost their lives crossing the border.

"You have to see the ambulance coming back from the river without the flashing lights on," Amerika Garcia-Grewal, an organizer with the group, told USA TODAY. The lack of sirens, she said, means "there is somebody dead inside, and we have to live with that."

In the dusk Saturday, hundreds of white crosses in Shelby Park's patchy grass were seen in photos posted on Facebook by Border Vigil, each one representing someone's life lost.

Contributing: Maureen Groppe and Lauren Villagran

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Children, woman die in Rio Grande as feds, Texas debate border control