The Latest: US may tell asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico

TIJUANA, Mexico – The Latest on a caravan of Central Americans seeking asylum in the United States (all times local):

5 p.m.

U.S. authorities say asylum-seekers in a caravan of Central Americans may have to wait in Mexico if the nation’s busiest border crossing in San Diego reaches capacity.

Pete Flores, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s San Diego field office director, said waiting time will depend on circumstances at the San Ysidro border crossing. He has said the port can hold about 300 people in temporary cells.

About 400 people, many travelling as families, have arrived in the Mexican border city Tijuana in a monthlong caravan from southern Mexico. Many plan to seek asylum at the San Diego crossing on Sunday.

The Border Patrol says “several groups” in the caravan have entered the country illegally since Friday by climbing a dilapidated metal fence nearby. It declined to say how many people.