U.S. Border Patrol agents were conducting routine patrol Feb. 27, approximately 50 miles northwest of Del Rio, when they noticed a man in severe pain and stranded on the Mexican bank of the Rio Grande River. After coordinating rescue efforts with the government of Mexico, agents steered their boat toward the suffering individual and determined that he had broken both legs while attempting to navigate the surrounding countryside. Mexican authorities were unable to reach the man’s location due to the treacherous landscape and lack of roads.      

   “Hazardous terrain can add great risk to the inherent dangers of traversing remote areas,” stated Acting Chief Patrol Agent Matthew J. Hudak in response to the event.  “Thanks to the keen eye of our Del Rio Sector marine agents, and with the coordination and support of our foreign partners, this man’s story did not end in greater tragedy.”

    With a CBP Air and Marine Operations helicopter and Border Patrol Search Trauma and Rescue (BORSTAR) agents providing assistance, the man was loaded onto a Border Patrol Lake Task Force boat and transported south across Lake Amistad. At a predetermined location on the international buoy-line, near the Amistad Dam, Mexican officials took the injured man aboard their boat and transported him to a medical facility for evaluation.