Boy, 9, dies on US-Mexico border
Washington, Mar 26 (efe-epa).- A 9-year-old migrant boy has died after he was found unconscious by United States border agents on an island in the Rio Grande, the Customs and Border Protection agency said Thursday.
The boy was found with his mother and 3-year-old brother, both also unconscious, on the island on the Mexican side of the river on Mar. 20, according to a CBP statement.
The agents administered first aid and transferred the migrants to shore, after which the woman and the youngest child regained consciousness.
The other minor, however, remained unresponsive and was later pronounced dead by medical professionals in Eagle Pass, Texas.
The CBP did not provide further details on the cause of death nor the circumstances of the event, except to say they had been attempting to cross the river.
The mother has Guatemalan nationality and her two children were from Mexico, it said.
The border between the US and Mexico has seen an influx in the arrival of migrants in recent weeks, many of them unaccompanied minors or families.
According to government sources quoted by the media, the CBP has around 5,000 minors in its custody, while Department of Health shelters currently host about 15,000 children who have crossed the border unaccompanied by their parents or legal guardian. EFE-EPA
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