Parasitic flies that eat human tissue to lay eggs in open wounds are just 90 miles from US border, officials confirm

NewsWorldAmericasParasitic flies that eat human tissue to lay eggs in open wounds are just 90 miles from US border, officials confirm​Sid Miller, the Texas agriculture commissioner, described the New World screwworm as a ‘direct and imminent threat’ to his stateOwen Scott Thursday 16 April 2026 13:15 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2958891","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/screwworm-texas-border-mexico-b2958891.html","title":"Parasitic flies that eat human tissue are just 90 miles from US border"}}CloseMexican cattle ranchers in crisis: US 'screwworm' fears halt livestock importThe latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekdayYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_Evening_Newsletter","regTitle":"Evening Headlines","subscriptionGroup":"us_evening_headlines","subscriptionGroupId":"4326e634-422a-4447-8e1e-604a937cd3b5","type":"daily_news","pathPrefix":["/us","/news/world/americas","/news/world/americas/crime"],"title":"The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday","mobileTitle":"Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/usEveningHeadlines1_1.png","label":"I would like to receive morning headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email","newsletterKey":"receiveEveningHeadlinesUSNews","regSourceSection":"Americas","regSourceMethod":"...