Several Injured In Structure Collapse At Border

By Jose Luis Jiménez
September 14, 2011

UPDATE: 4:13 p.m. - San Diego Police have tweeted that the border crossing will be congested for the next six hours. Drivers should use the Otay Mesa crossing if traveling north.

Eleven people were taken to the hospital after construction debris fell on them this morning at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the busiest border crossing in the world.

Getty Images
San Ysidro border crossing

Seven border crossers and four construction workers were injured when concrete and wood fell from above at about 10:45 a.m. A construction worker remains in serious condition and is expected to survive. The other injuries were considered minor.

Maurice Luque, spokesman for the San Diego fire department, said investigators are still searching for the cause.

“The construction people, along with federal structural engineers, are looking at the collapse area right now and determining what needs to be done next and have the ability to open up some lanes to allow traffic back into the United States from Mexico,” said Luque.

Southbound I-5 is closed at the border, and commuters are urged to avoid the area, according to a Tweet by Caltrans.

Traffic from the United States in Mexico was never stopped, though it was slowed. The Otay Mesa Port of Entry remains open.