SAN YSIDRO (KGTV) — Standing 30 feet tall, individual towers made of steel, meant to keep people out. On the side of the border wall, in San Ysidro, are three makeshift structures, providing shade and storage space for people helping asylum seekers on their journey.
“This is where we keep our medical supplies,” said Adriana Jasso with the American Friends Service Committee.
Jasso says they’ve recently seen fewer migrants here, but more are showing up injured. She says these medical supplies have been crucial for volunteers to offer immediate aid.
“It’s one of those situations where after attending to a medical situation it takes days to regroup emotionally and mentally. Because we wish we could do more.”
Jasso says she treats a couple injuries every day, sprained ankles or scraped knees. But for medical emergencies, she’ll call an ambulance to take the migrants to UCSD Health or Scripps Mercy Hospital.
“We’re very concerned that people are putting their lives at risk.”
I asked the two trauma centers how many people in the last two years came in with injuries after falling from the border wall. In total, their data shows more than 600 incidents in 2023, and around 1,000 in 2024. That’s a 59% increase this year, and they haven't finished counting yet.
“We wish people didn’t have to go through this, that people could have the ability and access to present their case, in a humane, dignified way.”
Jasso believes this is a result of President Biden’s asylum crackdown in June, which expedited removal of asylum seekers without providing a hearing. She says migrants are finding more dangerous ways to illegally cross, risking their lives to be in the United States.
