COVID cases in Baja California are reaching historic levels requiring new restrictions to be placed on southbound border tourism

1,225 deaths from COVID have been recorded so far this month in Baja California, setting a new monthly record in the state since the pandemic first broke out.

And the month isn’t over yet.

The growing numbers of infections, hospitalizations and deaths have many state and federal health officials on high alert, with some reporting that the real numbers are actually much higher.

Many in both the public and private sectors place at least part of the blame for the surging numbers here in Baja California on the lack of any serious measures to restrict the tourism traffic across the northern border.

And they have a point – California has battled to contain the virus and is facing record numbers of daily death tolls in recent days.

In recent weeks, both local and state government officials have been calling on the Mexican federal government to increase restrictions on southbound non-essential traffic into Baja California, just as the U.S. Government has been restricting non-essential border traffic heading northbound.

It looks like somebody in Mexico City was listening as the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana posted on Twitter yesterday, announcing increased restrictions by Mexican Customs to monitor and possibly deny entry to southbound border traffic.

The increased measures include screening to determine if your travel is “essential”, limiting 2 persons per vehicle, obligatory use of face masks and you can also expect to get your temperature checked.

Failure to comply with these new measures could result in fines and even your arrest.

The newly announced restrictions specifically mention Algodones and Mexicali, so it it remains to be seen if the southbound crossings at Tecate, Otay Mesa and Chaparral will be affected as well.