EDINBURG, Texas – Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol agents continue saving lives throughout the Rio Grande Valley.
Yesterday afternoon, Falfurrias Border Patrol Station agents were deployed from the checkpoint to a nearby ranch. These actions were prompted by information regarding migrants, lost and in distress. Station personnel acted swiftly with agents to coordinate the successful rescue of two individuals. A Border Patrol Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) assessed the migrants, one of whom, displaying signs of severe dehydration was transported to a hospital via emergency air ambulance.
Hours later, Kingsville Border Patrol Station agents received notification of a rescue beacon activation by a lost subject near Kingsville, Texas. Agents responded to the location and rescued a male Mexican national. The migrant was transported to the station and evaluated by a Border Patrol EMT.
This morning, Rio Grande City Border Patrol Station agents working in Rio Grande City, Texas, provided medical attention to a male Honduran national, who fell from a cliff, sustaining an injury to his leg. Due to the migrant’s inability to walk, agents stabilized his leg and moved him to a nearby road, where Starr County EMS responded and transported him to a local hospital.
To address the increase in the number of lost migrants requiring rescue in desolate ranch lands, the RGV Missing Migrant Program has deployed 24 rescue beacons throughout the Rio Grande Valley Sector, and 24 more are scheduled to be deployed by the end of this fiscal year. Rescue beacons are equipped with lights and signage, making it visible to lost and distressed subjects from a distance. Additionally, 1,400 rescue placards are deployed on ranch lands. The metal rescue placards have numbers that a person in need of assistance can relay to a 911 operator to instantly provide agents their location. There are also more than 22,000 landmarks, i.e. electrical pole lines, ranch gates, windmills, etc., that when relayed, can be retrieved from our database to provide responding units with the caller’s geographic coordinates. The deployments are in areas that will have the greatest impact on rescue efforts and are intended to save human lives.
This fiscal year, RGV agents have performed nearly 1,000 rescues throughout the Rio Grande Valley. RGV Sector urges immigrants not to jeopardize their lives by illegally entering the United States. The public is encouraged to take a stand against crime in their communities and to help save lives by reporting suspicious activity at 800-863-9382.
Please visit www.cbp.gov to view additional news releases and other information pertaining to Customs and Border Protection. Follow us on Twitter @CBPRGV, @USBPChiefRGV and @USBPDepChiefRGV.