Month: September 2026

UPDATE: Congresswoman Veronica Escobar toured Camp East Montana Thursday morning to find out about the reported confrontations between detainees and facility staff.

Escobar said ICE blamed a group of Venezuelans for starting those exchanges that led to the assault of staff and what ICE is describing as a riot.

Escobar said several people were taken to an area hospital and are expected to recover.

The Department of Homeland Security said that about 130 detainees started throwing items and flipping furniture in the detention center on September 7. They also disabled the security cameras in the area. DHS described this incident as a riot, but reported no injuries to staff or detainees.

“So while I absolutely agree that there should be consequences and accountability for those participants, my question was what will the accountability be for the contractor? The contractor, in my view, shares blame and responsibility,” said Escobar.

In a written statement, DHS said, “Violence against ICE officers, or any law enforcement personnel, will not be tolerated. Our officers carry out their Congressionally mandated duties in service to public safety and the rule of law. Any bystander or individual who assaults, obstructs, or violently attacks officers will be subject to arrest and prosecution permitted by law.”

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Congresswoman Veronica Escobar will hold a press conference to discuss her visit to Camp East Montana.

She has previously been very vocal in calling for the closure of the immigration detention center due to various incidents that have occurred there.

ABC-7 has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment.

In a statement, a spokesperson with DHS said the following:

“Is there any reasonable expectation that illegal aliens who resort to violence while awaiting their immigration proceedings in custody have any intention of becoming peaceful, law-abiding members of American society?

On September 1, detainees assaulted security staff by striking, kicking, and throwing tablets at them. Combative detainees were immediately removed from the dormitory and operations returned to normal. Multiple security staff sustained various injuries as a result of the assault and immediately received medical care.

On September 7 around 1 PM, approximately 130 illegal alien detainees at Camp East Montana began throwing items, flipping furniture, and disabling security cameras. The detainees involved caused significant damage to the detention facility and property. There are no reported injuries at this time, and all detainees have been accounted for.

Violence against ICE officers, or any law enforcement personnel, will not be tolerated. Our officers carry out their Congressionally mandated duties in service to public safety and the rule of law. Any bystander or individual who assaults, obstructs, or violently attacks officers will be subject to arrest and prosecution permitted by law.

Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $3,000 and a free flight to self-deport now. Every person here illegally can take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.”

All migrants involved were isolated inside of Camp East Montana and will now be referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for inciting a riot, participating in a riot and for damage of federal property.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — A massive water main break in January left approximately 100,000 people across Northeast and Central El Paso without water or experiencing low water pressure for four to five days. The outage impacted 38,000 El Paso Water customers and resulted in repair costs of $877,000, which were covered through the utility’s existing operational budget.

The widespread disruption occurred after two valves failed to close, preventing utility crews from isolating the pipeline leak. Water from the break flooded nearby properties, including one home that city inspectors later declared unsafe for living.

In response to the multi-day outage, El Paso Water established water distribution centers in different parts of that sector to assist affected residents.

Gilbert Trejo, vice president of operations and technical services for El Paso Water, acknowledged the severe impact the outage had on residents in the area.

“I think for the residents in the Northeast, we failed them,” VP Trejo said. “We do ask them to think about the other 361 days that perhaps they were not impacted because that’s what we’re working toward and we need to do better by them.”

VP Trejo acknowledged to ABC-7 that the $877,000 repair expense was absorbed entirely by the utility’s budget, meaning customers will not see a direct rate increase as a result of the incident.

“Unfortunately, the impact to our customers was great that week, but from a financial standpoint, we anticipate these types of events to occur,” VP Trejo said.

According to EPWater, the ruptured pipeline was installed in the 1950s, making it approximately more than 70 years old; pipelines typically have a 50-year lifespan, but not all of them.

According to El Paso Water, 30% of its large pipes citywide are near 70 years old, while 65% of its other pipes are 30 years old; the utility manages 3,000 miles of pipeline across the city.

VP Trejo also said that replacing the entire infrastructure network at once is not feasible due to the immense cost it could have.

“It’s more a targeted approach and a smarter approach to repair these aging pipes versus saying we have a plan to repair all 3,000 miles of pipeline that we have,” Trejo said. “That’s not practical; the ratepayers won’t be able to bear that type of cost.”

Although main breaks occur regularly, EPWater utility crews are typically able to isolate problems so residents remain unaffected.

“These types of main breaks, not to this size, but main breaks happen every day in El Paso and every week,” Trejo said. “The lessons that we learned, the things that we want to implement, we’re already implementing them so that we can act on them and certainly an event that large can be mitigated and even better prevented.”

Following the outage, El Paso Water began making operational adjustments to reduce the likelihood of similar widespread service disruptions.

VP Trejo also said the utility understands the frustration felt by impacted customers during the multi-day disruption.

“I think it’s fair. It’s fair that they’re upset,” Trejo said. “It’s fair that they’re bothered with it; I’d be very upset too if I didn’t have access to water that I felt that I have paid my fair share for.”

ABC-7 also spoke with Northeast El Paso resident Margarita Juarez, who witnessed the flooding affect her neighborhood, particularly her neighbor’s house directly across the street. While Juarez’s home was spared from severe damage, inspectors later deemed her neighbor’s home unsafe to live in.

Juarez also says she does not blame El Paso Water for the break and felt grateful that the utility provided help and found a solution for the community.

Watch the special report: “After the Break,” here.