TEXAS — Tech billionaire Elon Musk this week said he will visit the Texas-Mexico border, specifically Eagle Pass, as the region deals with a surge of migrant border crossings.

What You Need To Know

  • Elon Musk this week said he will visit the Texas border town of Eagle Pass as the region deals with a surge of migrant border crossings

  • Migrants were stopped at the border 142,037 times during the first 17 days of September, up 15% from 123,777 the same period last month

  • Last week, Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas declared a state of emergency when more than 4,000 migrants crossed the border into the West Texas border town 

  • On Friday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said that he instructed the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) to send more buses to the border towns of Eagle Pass and El Paso 

Responding to a video posted by Fox News to the social media site X — which Musk owns — that shows migrants atop a freight train headed to the U.S., Musk wrote, “I spoke with Rep Tony Gonzales tonight – he confirmed that it is a serious issue. They are being overwhelmed by unprecedented numbers – just hit an all-time high and still growing! Am going to visit Eagle Pass later this week to see what’s going on for myself.”

Migrants were stopped at the border 142,037 times during the first 17 days of September, up 15% from 123,777 the same period last month, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection figures released by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Last week, Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas declared a state of emergency when more than 4,000 migrants — a majority of them from Venezuela — crossed the border into the West Texas border town in the span of two days.

The influx of migrants prompted Salinas to reinstate an affidavit allowing Texas Department of Public Safety troopers to arrest those who have crossed the border illegally. And Gov. Greg Abbott has enlisted DPS troopers, Texas military and local law enforcement to address the situation.

On Friday, Abbott said that he instructed the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) to send more buses to the border towns of Eagle Pass and El Paso to assist with the thousands of migrant arrivals into the U.S.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.