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Multiple Rescues in Big Bend Sector

Release Date
Thu, 08/16/2018

MARFA, Texas – Customs and Border Protection personnel and county Emergency Medical Service (EMS) units in west Texas worked together to conduct multiple rescue operations in the Big Bend Sector during a four-day stretch in August.

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BORSTAR and AMO saving a life in 
the Big Bend sector

On August 7, Fort Stockton Border Patrol Agents rescued three illegal aliens near Highway 285, south of Fort Stockton, TX. The three Mexican Nationals had run out of food and not eaten in three days. The subjects refused medical attention.

The following day, Sierra Blanca Border Patrol Agents and El Paso BORSTAR (Border Patrol’s Search Trauma and Rescue Unit) located a severely dehydrated woman from Guatemala, south of Interstate 10. A CBP Air and Marine Operations (AMO) Air Interdiction Agent transported the woman by helicopter to a waiting Fort Hancock EMS crew. The woman was transported to El Paso for treatment.

On August 9, Presidio Border Patrol Agents and an AMO rotary-wing crew apprehended 14 illegal aliens in Big Bend Ranch State Park, northeast of Presidio. One of the subjects, a male from Guatemala, was severely dehydrated and lost consciousness. The AMO helicopter crew transported the subject from the remote area to a waiting Border Patrol Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). The subject was then transported and turned over to Presidio County EMS who transported him on to Big Bend Regional Medical Center in Alpine, TX for treatment.

USBP and BORTAC conducting rescue
USBP and BORSTAR agents' rescue in
the Big Bend sector

Finally, on August 10, Van Horn Border Patrol Agents rescued a man from Ecuador who was left behind in the desert by his group while trying to enter the country illegally. He was transported by Border Patrol to the Culberson County Hospital for treatment.

“This is a stark reminder of the dangers associated with illegal border crossings as well as the demanding and dangerous jobs that our agents perform on a daily basis,” said Chief Patrol Agent Robert L. Boatright. “It also speaks positively about our strong working relationships with our state and local partners which ultimately help save lives,” he added.

Big Bend Sector Border Patrol agents operate four Immigration Checkpoints and patrol 510 miles of the southwest border between Sierra Blanca and Sanderson, Texas.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Last Modified: Feb 03, 2021