NEAR FALFURRIAS — Border Patrol agents recued a man who was suffering severe dehydration Monday after being abandoned by a smuggler in a Brooks County ranch.
The unidentified Mexican man, believed to be in the country illegally, was in need of medical attention and transferred to a local hospital Monday where he was treated for dehydration. Later that day, agents found another person who had also been abandoned without water near the same area, according to a news release.
Near Kingsville, agents responding to a 9-1-1 call rescued a juvenile suffering of dehydration and stomach cramps, the release states. Meanwhile, agents responding to another 9-1-1 call near Sarita rescued two subjects who were dehydrated and left in the brush, the release states.
Since Oct. 1, 2015, to present, the RGV Sector has seen a 47 percent increase in rescues in comparison to the same time last year according to a news release. These numbers also include people who are found locked in trunks of vehicles or tractor-trailers trying to get past the Border Patrol checkpoints.
These numbers usually increase during the summer months, along with apprehensions and migrant deaths. So far this fiscal year, 35 migrant bodies, or remains, have been recovered across the Rio Grande Valley sector.
Doyle Amidon, patrol agent in charge of the Falfurrias station, said last week during a news conference addressing the new “Se Busca” campaign that Border Patrol is constantly evolving to change their tactics to meet the tactics of their adversaries.
READ: Border Patrol campaign puts a face to human smuggling
“Right now we are aware of an issue that bad guys are using trunks,” Amidon said. “We are focusing our efforts on trunks and are also working with prosecutors and the assistant U.S. Attorney’s Office to be able to target folks who are using that very unsafe technique to smuggle people through that checkpoint, so my message to smugglers who are doing that is: ‘We are on to you, you can stop doing that now.’”
Amidon urges immigrants not to jeopardize their lives by illegally entering the United States or by attempting to circumvent a checkpoint and encourages the public to take a stand against crime in their communities and help save lives by reporting suspicious activity to law enforcement.
Border Patrol can be reached directly on its tip line (800)863-9382.
