3-Year-Old Boy Dies After Getting Swept Away While Trying to Cross the Rio Grande with Family
Authorities found the boy and took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to multiple outlets
A 3-year-old boy died Wednesday after he was swept away as his family tried to cross the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas.
Troopers located the boy after responding to reports that a child had been swept away, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety told ABC News. He was then transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, ABC News, Spectrum News 1 Austin and NBC affiliate WOAI-TV reported.
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The boy, who has not been identified at this time, was pulled by the force of the current as the family tried to cross the river in Eagle Pass, north of the marine barrier, which Texas Gov. Greg Abbott had installed in order to prevent crossings, according to the outlets.
The Texas Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
Related: At Least 39 Dead and 29 Injured in Migrant Center Fire Near U.S.-Mexico Border
The journey through the river near Eagle Pass is often harrowing because there are steep drop-offs that can cause people to be pulled away among some shallow parts of the water, per ABC News.
Wednesday's death occurred amid a surge of migrant arrivals in the region, with Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas estimating that between 4,000 and 7,000 migrants have arrived in recent days, according to ABC News and Spectrum News 1 Austin.
Citing data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador recently said that authorities along the border have faced over 142,000 encounters in the first half of September, per Reuters.
Related: Texas National Guard Soldier Missing and Feared Drowned amid Rescue of Migrant from River
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According to The Intercept, more people have died attempting to cross the border in the last three fiscal years than at any other time in recorded U.S. immigration enforcement history.
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