Department of Health and Human Services officials will visit four military installations in Texas and Arkansas in the next two weeks to evaluate facilities to shelter immigrant children, according to a report from the Washington Post.
Citing an email notification to Pentagon staffers, the report says the bases would be used for minors who arrive at the border without an adult relative or after the government separated them from their parents.
The bases include Fort Bliss, Goodfellow Air Force Base and Dyess Air Force Base ― all in Texas ― while Little Rock Air Force Base will also be evaluated.
The site visits are characterized as preliminary assessments, according to the Post.
“No decisions have been made at this time,” the email states.
If the plans are implemented, it wouldn’t be the first time military facilities have been used to house immigrant children until an adult relative or sponsor can assume custody.
A complex with an 1,800-bed capacity was used in 2016 at Fort Bliss to house unaccompanied minors who immigrated to the U.S. And about 700 immigrant children stayed at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico that same year. The minors spent about a month at the facilities.
Stephen Weigand is digital content editor at Sightline Media Group.
