Border agents save Honduran migrant family-of-five from drowning as they try and swim from Mexico to Texas
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection saved a family who attempted to swim to Texas from Mexico
- CBP agents in Eagle Pass, Texas, were pressed into action Sunday when they spotted the migrants struggling to stay afloat in the Rio Grande River
- The family consisted of a father, mother, two sons and a daughter, and did not require additional medical treatment
- All five remained in custody of CBP and were processed per federal guidelines
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents rescued five family members from potentially drowning during their failed attempt to cross into the U.S. from Mexico this week.
Border Patrol officers from the Eagle Pass Station were pressed into action Sunday when they spotted a group of Honduran migrants struggling to stay afloat in the Rio Grande River, CBP said in a statement.
A unit was working a maritime surveillance operation and saw how the asylum seekers were drifting across the strong current.
The agents rerouted their boat and pulled the family aboard to safety.
A Border Patrol agent from the Eagle Pass Station assists three Honduran family members after they were found struggling to stay afloat as they tried to swim through the Rio Grande River’s strong current
The family, which consisted of a father, mother, two sons and daughter, was checked by a paramedic. CBP said the five individuals did not require additional medical attention.
The immigration enforcement agency said the family was taken to the Eagle Pass Processing Center and processed as per federal guidelines.
‘There are many dangers associated with crossing the Rio Grande River illegally. These situations can be avoided by pursuing more appropriate and legal pathways for entry into the United States,’ said Del Rio Sector Acting Chief Patrol Agent Doyle E. Amidon, Jr.
‘If our agents had not reacted in time, this family could have drowned.’
CBP reported a slight rise in apprehensions [30,068] in the month of February along the southwest border following a decline in the arrests of undocumented migrants crossing the United States-Mexico border in the previous three months.
Immigration officials registered 33,517 apprehensions in November, 32,854 in December and 29,206 in January.
A CBP boat (photographed July 2019) sits docked under the international bridge in Eagle Pass, Texas, on the Rio Grande River across from Mexico. It is a common area frequented by migrants seeking to enter the United States