Attorneys at the National Center for Youth Law spoke to about a dozen children in Donna, Texas this week, according to Leecia Welch, the center’s senior director of advocacy and child welfare.
The kids were terrified, crying, and worried that they wouldn’t be able to talk to family members, Welch said. Some said they hadn’t seen sunlight for days. Others said if they were lucky they would go out every few days for 20 minutes.
“Donna is rapidly becoming a humanitarian crisis,” Welch told CNN. “We understand that the administration has inherited this disaster, but I cannot stress enough how urgent the situation is with the growing number of young unaccompanied children. We spoke to countless distraught children who do not understand why they cannot talk to their parents. their siblings in Donna, or get some fresh air. ‘
In response to questions about the allegations, a CBP spokesperson sent a statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) saying that border guards “are committed to taking care of unaccompanied children in their care.”
“Addressing the flow of unaccompanied children crossing our southwest border is a major priority of this administration and the DHS,” the statement said. “It requires a coordinated and sustained response across the government.”
Earlier this week, a DHS official told CNN that the Donna facility was “significantly overcrowded,” describing the conditions officials observed during their visit last weekend.
Lawyer: Children are scared and try to comfort each other
The team of lawyers was given access to talk to the children as they oversee government compliance with the Flores settlement, a 1997 agreement that limits the duration and conditions under which U.S. officials can detain immigrant children.
Welch said lawyers were allowed to enter a space designated for lawyers, but were not allowed to visit areas housing children.
Lawyers were handed a manifesto from the facility, which was about 100 pages long, Welch said. Each page featured many children under the age of 10, she said.
At the facility, children are divided into pods about 50, by age and gender, Welch said. That, she said, means that siblings of different sexes are separated, making the already stressful situation for children even worse.
Most kids have been in the facility for five to seven days, Welch said, and they’re scared. Because CBP officials should not hug or comfort children, children should nurture and comfort each other, she said.
The attorney said hygiene in the facility is also a concern. Some kids shower about once a week, and sometimes the soap runs out and only shampoo is available, she said. One child told Welch she hadn’t showered in six days.
Limited hiding space is a concern
CBP officials did not respond to CNN’s requests for comment on why attorneys were not allowed to visit the facility.
Earlier this week, the agency’s senior official described conditions at the facility to reporters, including three daily meals, 24/7 access to snacks and drinks, showers provided at least every 48 hours, and a recreation area.
“Those are just a few of the things we do with the kids,” said Troy Miller, senior official in charge of CBP commissioner. “I tell you, many of us, maybe most of us are parents, fathers, mothers – I have a 6-year-old myself – and these Border Patrol agents do everything they can to take care of the kids every day.”
Welch said what is needed immediately is quick case management, which will allow the children to be placed in HHS care as soon as possible.
Officials have said they are working towards faster processing.
“(W) e continue to grapple with the number of people in our custody, especially given the pandemic,” Miller said Wednesday. “We need to get them out faster.”
In recent days, the number of children under HHS custody has risen, indicating that the department is gradually absorbing the number of children who only cross the U.S.-Mexico border, taking them out of Border Patrol facilities and into shelters where they can be received .
There are approximately 8,800 unaccompanied children in HHS custody, the department said Thursday, up from last week when the number hovered around 7,700.
Geneva Sands and CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez contributed to this report.