LORDSBURG, N.M. – U.S. Border Patrol Agents from the Lordsburg Border Patrol Station located a migrant in distress using a recently deployed rescue beacon south of Hachita, New Mexico.
On Monday, 51-year-old Mexican national activated the rescue beacon just after 10:30 p.m. Agents were able to respond to the activation, locate the distressed individual and rescue him.
The man was later expelled under Title 42 via the Columbus Port of Entry for entering the United States illegally.
The El Paso Sector has led the way in leveraging technology to rescue and provide aid to migrants stranded in the harsh, high-desert terrain. Rescue beacons are only one part of the overall rescue efforts in the El Paso Sector. The El Paso Sector routinely collaborates with nongovernmental organizations, including agencies at the local, county, state and federal level in addition to continued coordination with our foreign partners in the Government of Mexico to rescue migrants in distress.
The U.S. Border Patrol in the El Paso Sector has been actively working this year to deploy 15 new rescue beacons in high-traffic strategic areas where migrants may be in distress due to exposure to the elements in the desert and mountains. In the last 24 hours, there have been five rescues within the El Paso Sector by various means. Due to the recently deployed rescue beacon near Hachita, one more migrant was rescued.
“The El Paso Sector Border Patrol utilized a recently deployed rescue beacon in Lordsburg, New Mexico to successfully rescue a distressed individual late Monday evening,” said El Paso Sector Chief Patrol Agent Gloria I. Chavez. “We continue to invest in innovative technology that assists Border Patrol Agents in preventing the loss of human life."
U.S. Customs and Border Protection welcomes assistance from the community. Citizens are encouraged to report suspicious activity to the U.S. Border Patrol while remaining anonymous by calling 1-800-635-2509.