Migrant Father, Child Rescued from Texas Border River

Border Patrol agents assigned to the Brownsville Station teamed up with Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations officers to rescue a migrant father and son when they became trapped in strong currents in the Rio Grande. The pair attempted to cross the river with a group of about 49 migrants.

Brownsville Station agents observed a group of about 49 migrants attempting to illegally cross the Rio Grande from Mexico. Border Patrol agents began taking the migrants who successfully crossed underneath the Brownsville Gateway International Bridge into custody, according to a statement obtained from Rio Grande Valley Sector officials. The agents observed migrants stuck in the middle of the river from the strong currents and requested assistance from an AMO river crew.

The CBP riverine unit moved their boat into position and rescued a migrant father and his toddler. They transported the father and son to the riverbank where Border Patrol agents provided a medical assessment. The agents transported all of the migrants to the processing center where they will be screened and processed according to Rio Grande Valley Sector guidelines.

Elsewhere along the border, Yuma Sector agents also rescued a migrant father and his son after a strong current in a canal near the Morelos Dam swept them away on July 17, officials reported in a statement on Tuesday. The incident occurred at about 8:15 a.m. when agents observed a father and son enter the Salinity Canal near Yuma, Arizona. The man and his son began having difficulty staying afloat, agents reported. The agents attempted to deploy rescue discs but the migrant could not reach them.

Agents then directed the migrant father to grab onto the brush and hand the child over to Border Patrol agents. The agents pulled the child to safety. After the agents recovered the child, they assisted the father in climbing out of the swiftly moving water in the canal.

The agents reported that neither the father or son reported any medical needs, but the agents transported them to a nearby hospital out of precaution and care for the migrants in their custody. Doctors at the hospital determined the father suffered acute respiratory distress as a result of the canal incident. The doctors treated the migrant and released him and his child to Border Patrol agents.

The agents processed the migrants for immigration violations after transporting them to the Border Patrol station.

Border Patrol agents rescued more than 3,000 migrants during the first nine months of the current fiscal year which began October 1, 2018.