In an incident that underscores the challenges faced by migrants along the border, Border Patrol agents responded to a 911 call from a migrant who had fallen victim to the scorching heat on a ranch. Sadly, by the time help arrived, the migrant had succumbed to the harsh elements.
The incident occurred last Saturday on a privately-owned ranch in the southern border city of Eagle Pass, Texas. Local law enforcement quickly located the distressed migrant and alerted Border Patrol agents, prompting a rapid search and rescue mission.
Despite the agents’ swift response, they arrived to find the lifeless body of the migrant alongside the cell phone used to dial 911. The migrant’s remains were later transported to a local funeral home, pending an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death. Their identity remains unknown.
Sources within Customs and Border Protection shed light on the unfortunate event, revealing the harrowing reality that many migrants face as they try to evade capture and seek a better life.
An insider explained that the recent heatwave sweeping across the region has led to several tragic migrant deaths in recent weeks. During the week ending on August 5th, the Del Rio Sector of the Border Patrol reported five migrant fatalities, the exact reasons undisclosed.
Concerningly, fears are growing that additional migrants may have died in remote rural areas in their bid to move undetected, and have been undiscovered. “The migrants play a dangerous game of wanting to get away from us by moving through isolated ranches and avoiding human contact altogether. Smugglers move them through these areas and often leave them behind when they become too ill to keep up with others,” the source shared.
Tragically, instead of seeking assistance at the first sign of trouble, many migrants wait until their condition becomes dire, making it extremely challenging to save them.“By the time they do call — despite our best efforts — oftentimes it’s just too late to save them,” the source explained.
With temperatures consistently soaring above 100 degrees Fahrenheit for over a month, the challenges of the journey are becoming even more perilous, as Border Patrol records show that the toll of migrant lives lost at the border continues to rise. Last month, the extreme heat killed 13 migrants within one week.
In July alone, 125 migrants reportedly lost their lives while attempting to cross the U.S. southwest border. In the Del Rio Sector, the Border Patrol recorded 31 migrant deaths in July, including the cases from Eagle Pass.
The collective migrant death toll for July across the El Paso, Del Rio and Tucson Border Patrol Sectors averaged more than three per day, suggesting that more than three people die every day trying to cross the borders into the U.S.
