Customs and Border Patrol have apprehended a record number of migrant children at the Southern border in December–24,000–with one more week to go in a month that has seen two children from Guatemala die in custody after falling ill after being brought illegally into the U.S. by their fathers.

Caravan of migrant families on the march to the U.S., October 2018.

ABC News reporter Matt Gutman noted the stunning number of children pouring across the border in a report on the death of an 8-year-old Guatemalan boy, Felipe Gómez Alonzo, on Christmas Eve, “. @ CBP launching an internal investigation after 2nd child died in its custody in less than 3 weeks. The @ CDCgov has been notified amidst a record number of children crossing the border this month – 24k. What the agency’s commissioner told me, now on @ GMA“

.@CBP launching an internal investigation after 2nd child died in its custody in less than 3 weeks. The @CDCgov has been notified amidst a record number of children crossing the border this month – 24k. What the agency’s commissioner told me, now on @GMA https://t.co/vKYVNxgl2A — Matt Gutman (@mattgutmanABC) December 26, 2018

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Questions surround the death of an 8-year-old Guatemalan boy who died while in U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody after being treated for an undisclosed illness. @MattGutmanABC has the latest on the investigation. https://t.co/6XKGdRxy79 pic.twitter.com/QIQuzvlVCG — Good Morning America (@GMA) December 26, 2018

24,000 adults would make a good sized town by themselves. 24,000 children is at least a dozen or more school buildings plus all the welfare and government funded care that minors are entitled to just for being here.

Many of the children are unaccompanied by an adult, but most are part of “family units”. Statistics posted by CBP for the Southwestern region show over 100,000 family units and unaccompanied children were caught in the first two months of FY 2019, October and November. UACs averaged about 5,000 for those two months. The number of migrant FUs averaged 24,000. That 24,000 children have been caught in the first three weeks of December is staggering and is overwhelmng the ability of the government to process and take care of the migrants–(classic Cloward-Piven strategy in action.) Because logistics and overcrowding the Guatemalan boy was moved with his father to several CBP facilities after they were caught on December 18 before he took ill.

CBP definition of FUs: “Family Unit represents the number of individuals (either a child under 18 years old, parent or legal guardian) apprehended with a family member by the U.S. Border Patrol.”

CBP released a timeline of the Guatemalan boy’s apprehension and medical care, aong with updated guidelines for children in CBP custody. The CBP statement can be read here.)