On November 30, the child, along with their mother and another child, had been separated from a larger group of illegal aliens who had recently breached the southern border. The CBP emergency medical technicians who rescued them were assigned to the Laredo South Station.
“The dangers and risks posed by illegal entry and traveling through remote areas during even warm temperatures can be life endangering. U.S. Border Patrol agents are trained and equipped to respond to every situation including life threatening ones and adapt to roles according to need,” the agency stated.
This incident is merely the latest example of rescue operations by CBP that occur on a regular basis. Throughout this year’s historic increase in illegal immigration, border guards have been preoccupied with rescuing unaccompanied children and illegal aliens from the elements.
For instance, the same day border agents rescued the toddler in Laredo, CBP agents rescued a Guatemalan “juvenile migrant” who had been abandoned by his mother on the American side of the Rio Grande.
The Guatemalan consulate had reached out to Del Rio border patrol agents about the minor, who was found with documents that contained a fictitious name and date of birth, according to a CBP press statement.
CBP found the child after Guatemalan authorities provided a picture, the minor’s name, and a possible location. CBP indicated that he had entered illegally near Del Rio exactly one week earlier with a group of 13 illegal aliens before his mother abandoned him and went back to Mexico.
Border guards and the Guatemalan consulate reunited the juvenile with his mother after rescuing him. CBP did not state how old the child was.
Chief Patrol Agent Jason D. Owens of the Del Rio sector pointed to the fact that border agents do not serve strictly in an enforcement capacity.
“This event highlights the dangerous situations in which small migrant children are often placed. Sometimes, even their own parents contribute,” Owens said. “I am proud of the diligence and dedication of our agents as they once again transitioned from an enforcement role to a humanitarian mission.”
CBP noted in its press release that there was a 98 percent increase in encounters with unaccompanied children in the Del Rio sector in October 2021 as compared to October 2020.
According to statistics that are current as of November 3, the agency reported a combined 9,827 encounters with unaccompanied minors in Texas border patrol sectors, including 804 encounters in the Del Rio sector and 320 in the Laredo sector.
Also in October, there were 26,085 apprehensions in Texas border patrol sectors of individuals who were part of a family unit.
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Hayden Sparks
Hayden Sparks is a senior reporter for The Texan and a lifelong resident of the Lone Star State. He has coached competitive speech and debate and has been involved in politics since a young age. One of Hayden's favorite quotes is by Sam Houston: "Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression, come from what source it may."
