Migrant Woman Dies After Incidental Discovery in South Texas

A woman rescued by Border Patrol agents died in the hospital from dehydration and heat-related illness after agents incidentally found her during a search for another missing migrant family.

Border Patrol agents assigned to the McAllen Station responded to a call from the Sullivan City Police Department on Tuesday about a group of illegal immigrants who turned themselves in to authorities. When agents arrived on the scene, the observed that one of the male migrants appeared to be suffering from heat-related illnesses caused by dehydration. The agents identified the man as a 23-year-old Mexican national, according to information provided to Breitbart Texas by Rio Grande Valley Sector officials.

Agents called for a local ambulance to provide emergency medical assistance. While waiting for the ambulance crew, the Mexican national told the agents he had illegally crossed the Rio Grande River border from Mexico with his wife an two small children. He said he decided the trek northward had become too dangerous and asked them to return to Mexico. Rather than traveling back to ensure his family’s safety, the man separated himself from his family and proceeded north.

The illegal immigrant told the agents he was concerned that his abandoned wife and children may have become lost in the brush and asked the agents to find them.

Border Patrol agents quickly contacted supervisors to initiate a search. The supervisors deployed several search and rescue teams including a National Guard helicopter aircrew assigned to Operation Guardian Support. The search teams began patrols along the U.S. side of the Rio Grande River, officials stated.

During the search, agents found an unconscious woman. However, the woman did not match the description of the missing wife, and no children were found.

 

The agents extracted the woman from the dense foliage found along the riverbank. They transported her to a nearby highway where a local medical helicopter crew airlifted the woman to an area hospital. Officials initially listed the woman remains in critical condition. Unfortunately, Border Patrol officials told Breitbart Texas Thursday afternoon that the woman died in the hospital. Agents said the woman was a Honduran national who illegally entered the U.S.

Officials said they did not locate the Mexican man’s wife and two children.

Border Patrol agents returned on Wednesday to find out more information from the Mexican man about the area where he abandoned his wife and children. He told the agents he finally received a phone call from his wife and that she had safely returned to Mexico.