Border county hospitals in El Paso and San Diego have seen a sharp increase in patients with trauma related to falls from the taller barrier. Physicians are calling this a public health crisis for border communities, with injuries ranging from severe lower extremity fractures to life-altering spinal and cranial injuries. Despite the dangers, the Biden administration and the state of Texas continue to invest in new border fencing.
EL PASO, Texas – Alma Zavala, a young mother from Mexico, found herself in a terrifying predicament atop the 30-foot steel border fence. Only when she was at the pinnacle did she realize the perilous descent that awaited her.
As she clung to the wall, her hands bleeding from its rough edges, a guide urged her to let go. She finally released her grip and plummeted, feeling her bones snap upon impact.
Zavala is now recovering in an El Paso shelter, sharing a room with four other migrants who survived similar falls from the nearly three-story-tall barrier. Collectively, they have undergone eight surgeries in the past month, with Zavala’s right leg supported by an external fixator resembling scaffolding.
Emerging public health data support the suspicions of trauma surgeons in border counties: the 30-foot border wall is causing more injuries and fatalities than any previous barrier.
Physicians are deeming these falls and fatalities a public health crisis for border communities, occurring at a time when both the Biden administration and the state of Texas are investing in new border fencing amid record apprehensions of migrants.
Chief trauma surgeons at county hospitals in El Paso and San Diego report receiving patients with border wall fall-related trauma at a rate of one per day in 2023. The injuries vary from complex lower extremity fractures, including shattered ankles, foot, and leg bones, to life-altering spinal and cranial injuries.
Dr. Susan McLean, the surgical ICU medical director at University Medical Center in El Paso, pointed out that border wall falls have “a mortality rate that is higher than COVID in the general population” and are occurring throughout the entire border region.
In October, the Biden administration announced plans to waive over two dozen environmental protection laws to construct 20 miles of new border fencing in south Texas this year, breaking a campaign promise to halt new barrier construction. While the fence proposed for Starr County is described as shorter and “moveable,” the Department of Homeland Security has already begun replacing an 18-foot fence with the 30-foot version near San Diego. DHS has not responded to inquiries regarding whether public health outcomes are considered when designing border barriers.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has previously stated that illegal border crossings are inherently dangerous and encouraged migrants to seek lawful pathways into the United States. Texas is also increasing its border security measures, including the construction of 50 additional miles of border fencing, in response to what it perceives as President Biden’s “open border policies.”
Despite then-President Donald Trump’s description of the 30-foot fence as impassable, Border Patrol officials tend to use the term “border barrier system” to refer to a combination of fencing, lighting, cameras, technology, and roadways that slow but do not completely prevent migrants from crossing the border unlawfully.
The injured women at the shelter, all with severe lower extremity injuries, used makeshift rope ladders made of braided cord and plastic pipe to climb the 30-foot fence. They did not anticipate the height or the absence of a way down on the U.S. side, and they believed they wouldn’t be eligible for a visa or considered at a port of entry. In the hands of smugglers, there was no turning back for these migrants, who faced the daunting task of scaling the imposing barrier.
As Alma Zavala reflected on her decision, she thought of her toddler son’s health and the financial burden of his medical care. She had no choice but to climb, leading to a harrowing and life-altering fall.