U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have opened a soft-sided facility in Yuma. Officials say the facility’s primary purpose is to safely process individuals in U.S. Border Patrol custody.
CBP officials say the facility will be weatherproof, climate-controlled and is expected to provide areas for eating, sleeping and personal hygiene. The new facility’s design is similar to that of recently constructed soft-sided facilities.
The 90,000 square foot facility sits on five acres of the Yuma Sector Headquarters. Officials say the temporary facility will provide additional processing capacity for Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector.
Since April 2020, CBP officials say they have seen a steady increase in border encounters from the Western Hemisphere due in part to worsening economic conditions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters affecting the area.
