MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican authorities will install health checkpoints at various points of entry along its northern border this weekend, as both Mexican and US authorities fear an increase in crossings during the July 4 holiday can spread the coronavirus.
FILE PHOTO: A closed crosswalk is seen at the U.S.-Mexico border after United States President Donald Trump tweeted that he will sign an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration to the United States during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in San Diego, California, USA, April 21, 2020. REUTERS / Mike Blake / File Photo
In recent days, Mexican consulates across the United States reiterated warnings on social media about the accelerated measures scheduled for July 2 and 5, and urged people to refrain from crossing for recreation or tourism.
A ban on non-essential border travel has been in place since March in an attempt by both governments to limit coronavirus infections, but cross-border traffic has been busy.
The northern border region of Mexico is home to a large population of green card holders and US citizens, including dual citizens, who are generally free to cross from one side to the other.
In Sonora, which has the third highest coronavirus rate per capita in Mexico and is located in front of Arizona, Governor Claudia Pavlovich said that the health exams would cover beaches and towns frequented by Mexicans and tourists.
Neighboring Baja California, including the bustling border city of Tijuana, off San Diego, ranks fifth in most cases of per capita coronavirus.
The states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas have recorded at least several thousand confirmed cases, and all sit opposite Texas, which is grappling with a spike in infections that includes a record number of hospitalizations on Friday.
United States Ambassador Christopher Landau on Saturday urged people to celebrate the holiday virtually in a video posted on his Twitter account featuring a member of the pop band Backstreet Boys and artist Steve Aoki, among others. .
He had already urged people to stay in one country or another over the Independence Day weekend. Hundreds of thousands of people cross overland per day despite the non-essential travel ban, he said.
“If American citizens continue to make casual trips across the border, the restrictions will increase, they will not decrease,” Landau wrote on Twitter.
“Whichever side of the border you live on, this is NOT the time to cross to shop, eat, or visit family on the other side.”
Still, photos posted on social media on Friday showed long lines of cars in the border city of Nogales, in the northern state of Sonora, seeking to cross into Arizona.
Report by Daina Beth Solomon; Additional reports from Stefanie Eschenbacher; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Diane Craft
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