Border Patrol, Mexican military partner to save migrants in Yuha desert
Two Mexican nationals were rescued in the desert outside of Calexico on Sunday thanks to the joint efforts of Border Patrol agents and Mexican officials.
On July 27, Mexican government officials received a 911 distress call from two men who were lost in the desert. The officials reached out to El Centro Sector Border Patrol’s Foreign Operations Branch (FOB) and shared the GPS coordinates of the distress call.
Mexican officials informed Border Patrol that a Mexican military helicopter and members of the Mexican immigration service, Grupo BETA, had been continually sweeping the Yuha Desert on the Mexican side of the border, but the distressed party had not been found.
At around 12:10 p.m. on July 28, members of the Border Patrol Search Trauma and Rescue Team (BORSTAR) were able to locate the two men in the U.S. side of the Yuha Desert. The 15-year-old boy and 21-year-old man were found in the shade of some desert undergrowth, suffering from severe dehydration.
BORSTAR members were able to administer intravenous saline bags to the two, before transporting them by air ambulance from the desert for further treatment.
On Sunday, temperatures in the Yuha Desert reached up to 115 degrees.
“BORSTAR knowingly puts their own wellbeing on the line to rescue people in dire situations,” said Acting Chief Patrol Agent Ryan J. Scudder. “Thankfully, these two migrants did not fall victim to the severe heat conditions in which the callous smugglers left them in.”
Ten agents are assigned to El Centro Sector’s BORSTAR team. The rescue was conducted approximately 29 miles to the west of Calexico.
