Border Patrol unit aids hundreds of migrants

FERNANDA ECHÁVARRI

The dead and the dying.
That's what U.S. Border Patrol agents were finding more often in the southern Arizona desert after the agency began cracking down on illegal immigration through the state a decade ago.
Hundreds of immigrants were dying each year, especially during the summer, prompting the Border Patrol to develop a rescue team to handle the hundreds of cases of migrants suffering from exposure to brutal heat or bitter cold.
Despite the interdiction effort, tens of thousands of illegal immigrants continue to risk the arduous trip through the desert.
From October 2006 through September 2007, the Border Patrol Search Trauma and Rescue team, known as BORSTAR, rescued 573 illegal immigrants who needed medical assistance and recovered the bodies of 202 suspected crossers.
From October 2007 through May, BORSTAR rescued 190 people and recovered 75 bodies, said Mario Escalante, a Border Patrol spokesman
BORSTAR consists of 44 agents. All are emergency medical technicians and six of them are paramedics. Each also has at least two years of Border Patrol experience, Escalante said.
In the past couple of years, more illegal immigrants have been carrying cell phones, which they are increasingly using to call for help.
Vince Hampel, BORSTAR's deputy commander, said that so far this year, most of the 911 calls reporting illegal immigrants in distress have been made by the immigrants themselves.
"Some of these people are from places where they have no idea what it's like to be at 112 degrees," Hampel said.
For some illegal immigrants, it's a four-day journey to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. That's not counting the days, weeks or months it could take them to get through Mexico to the border.
Last year, many migrants from Mexico and South America, were found to have taken caffeine pills to stay awake and for more energy while crossing, Hampel said.
This year, BORSTAR agents have seen a decrease in their use.
"Those pills were worse for them than they thought because it severely dehydrates these people, who are already in extreme heat and lack water," Hampel said.
Also this year, agents have found an increase in the use of Pedialyte and other types of bottled water containing electrolytes, Hampel said.
He said water alone will never be adequate for crossing the desert in the summer heat.
When BORSTAR agents come in contact with a group of illegal immigrants, they ask questions and observe their condition before offering medical help, Hampel said
Mostost illegal immigrants who travel in the desert during the summer are dehydrated when they come in contact with BORSTAR agents.
"After a couple thousands cc's (cubic centimeters) of an IV with an electrolyte solution, some of them are fine, though some cases can get very serious," Hampel said.
In 2007, there were more than 330 rescues involving severe heat exposure. Such rescues are the most common, said Michael Scioli, also a Border Patrol spokesman.
Last year there were 23 rescues for hypothermia, three for drownings during the monsoon season, four motor-vehicle rescues and 200 classified as "other." All of the rescues involved illegal immigrants, Scioli said.
"When their life is on the line, that's what you go for," Scioli said. "Then you worry about their citizenship status."
The Mexican government also is trying to warn illegal immigrants of the dangers, and local activists have placed water stations in the desert to help them.
The Mexican Consulate in Tucson has conducted a campaign since 2003 to show Mexican citizens the dangers in crossing the desert.
The posters and short videos show people getting hurt and dying in their attempt to cross the border. Some show people getting arrested and put in jail, while others include the testimony of people who have lost family members in the desert.
"This is a job that has to be done because hundreds are dying every year and we have to do something," said Alejándro Rámos-Cardoso, spokesman for the Mexican Consulate in Tucson.
"It is very difficult to judge the success of the campaign, but we'd like to think, without these efforts to show people how dangerous it really is to cross, there would be more deaths," he said.
Humane Borders has been providing water tanks for illegal immigrants for the past eight years, said Robin Hoover, president and co-founder of the group.
There are now 90 water stations, Hoover said, each holding about 50 gallons of water. Each station has at least two tanks. Some are located in the areas surrounding Douglas, Lukeville and Ajo; others are on the Mexican side of the border, Hoover said.
 

    Desert rescues and deaths
    Year Rescues - Deaths
    2003: 373      - 137
    2004: 563      - 142
    2005: 985      - 219
    2006: 622      - 169
    2007: 573      - 202
    Source: U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson sector