EAGLE PASS, Texas — Border Patrol agents responded to a 911 call from a migrant on a ranch suffering from heat exhaustion only to find the migrant had succumbed to the exposure to the elements. According to a source within Customs and Border Protection, the incident tells the tale of migrants who seek to avoid apprehension at all costs and wait too long to call for emergency assistance when they become too ill to continue their trek.
The incident occurred on Saturday on a privately owned ranch south of the border city of Eagle Pass. Local law enforcement authorities triangulated the location of the 911 call and alerted the Border Patrol, triggering an immediate search and rescue response. Despite the quick dispatch of Border Patrol agents to the scene, the lifeless body of the migrant was found along with the cell phone used to make the call. The unidentified deceased migrant was transported to a local funeral home, and an autopsy is pending.
The source says the recent heatwave blanketing much of the south has contributed to several migrant fatalities in recent weeks in the border region. During the seven-day period ending August 5, the Border Patrol’s Del Rio Sector reported five migrant fatalities but did not specify the causes of death. The source fears many more migrants have succumbed to the heat on rural ranchlands that have gone undiscovered. Temperatures in the area have consistently remained above 100 degrees Fahrenheit for more than a month.
“The migrants play a dangerous game of wanting to get away from us by moving through isolated ranches and avoiding human contact altogether,” the source told Breitbart Texas. “Smugglers move them through these areas and often leave them behind when they become too ill to keep up with others.”
Rather than call for assistance at the earliest opportunity, the migrants wait until it is evident that they cannot go on any further without help, the source explained. “By the time they do call — despite our best efforts — oftentimes it’s just too late to save them,” the source emphasized.
As reported by Breitbart Texas, 125 migrants perished attempting to cross the U.S. southwest border in July. The total number of deceased migrants recorded by the Border Patrol since October is nearing 500, according to the source.
The Border Patrol recorded 31 migrant deaths during the month of July in the Del Rio Sector. This includes the migrant deaths recorded by the agency in Eagle Pass. Most of the deaths recorded nationally in July involved heat-related injuries. The total migrant deaths in July for the El Paso, Tucson, and Del Rio Border Patrol Sectors averaged more than 3 per day.
In 2022, a study by the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration (IOM) declared the United States-Mexico land border to be the most dangerous land crossing in the world. U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 800 deaths during the year. The designation by the IOM is likely to remain unchanged when the total of migrant deaths on both sides of the U.S./Mexico border is finalized for 2023.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on Twitter @RandyClarkBBTX.
