see also: in January 2007 News Releases:   Membership of Trade/Customs Advisory Committee Announced   CBP Border Patrol Launches Massive Search to Preserve Life   CBP Officers Make 22 Drug Busts at Calexico Ports During Busy Week   3,010 Pounds of Marijuana Seized at Nogales Port of Entry   CBP Border Patrol Makes a Record Drug Bust   Registration Underway for Third CBP Conference on ACE   CBP Officers Nab Mother/Daughter Cocaine Smugglers; Juveniles With Marijuana Loads Also Nabbed This Week ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

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Yuma, Ariz. — U.S. Customs and Border Protection Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents were kept busy tallying seven rescues of distressed or injured people over the New Year holiday weekend.

The latest rescue, involving two illegal aliens who attempted to cross the Salinity Canal just east of San Luis, Ariz., occurred about 3:40 a.m. Jan. 3. The pair, which entered the U.S. illegally, was observed by a camera operator at the Yuma Sector Communications Center as they entered the canal and was unable to climb out. Border Patrol agents were dispatched to the scene and the two aliens were pulled from the canal. Fortunately, no injuries resulted from the incident and the individuals were transported to the Yuma Border Patrol Station for processing.

On Jan. 2, a Yuma Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue (BORSTAR) agent responded to a request for assistance by Rural Metro Fire and Rescue personnel after a 13-year-old boy was injured in a motorcycle accident in Buttercup Valley in the Imperial Sand Dunes west of Andrade, Calif. The BORSTAR agent, along with a Calexico Border Patrol agent, transported emergency personnel to the scene and administered first aid to the injured youth. He was transported by a waiting ambulance to the Yuma Regional Medical Center for treatment.

Three individuals, including two children, were rescued in two separate incidents Dec. 31. The first incident occurred about 4 p.m. near the Imperial Sand Dunes in which BORSTAR agents responded to a request for medical assistance after a 12-year-old boy suffered a puncture wound to the chest. The agents arrived at the scene and after stabilizing the boy, requested air medevac. The boy was transported via helicopter to a hospital in San Diego, Calif., where he received further treatment for his injury.

Later the same day, Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents responded to a request for assistance by the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office in locating a woman and her child, who became lost in the desert after their vehicle became disabled while traveling on an unimproved road.

RESCUES 2-2-2

The woman decided to walk down the mountain with her child while her husband remained with the vehicle. After becoming lost, she placed a 911 call. Border Patrol agents found the woman and her child west of the Gila Mountains about 8:30 p.m. They reported no injuries and were taken to their residence where she contacted her husband, who was also being transported to the residence by a friend of the family.

On Dec. 29, 2006, Yuma BORSTAR agents responded to a request for medical assistance from San Bernardino, Calif., Police Dispatch about 10 p.m. after a 16-year-old female was injured in the Imperial Sand Dunes area. The female sustained injuries to her leg and hip after being run over while attempting to free a dune buggy that became stuck in the sand. Upon arrival, BORSTAR agents assisted U.S. Forest Service emergency medical technicians who were already at the scene. The agents transported her to the Dune Buggy Flats Reception Station where Rural Metro Fire and Rescue personnel were waiting. She was then transported to the Yuma County Regional Medical Center for further medical evaluation.

Through December 31st, the Yuma Sector tallied seven rescues since fiscal year 2007 began Oct. 1, 2006, compared to 92 rescues for the same period in 2005. Overall for FY 06, which ran from Oct. 1, 2005 to Sept. 30, 2006, the number of rescues in the sector totaled 369.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security responsible for the management, control, and protection of our Nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.