Border Patrol saves critically-injured migrant

Agents stage multiple rescues during Thanksgiving weekend

CAMPO, Calif. (KYMA, KSWT, KECY) - San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents had to save more than 20 people over the course of the Thanksgiving weekend, including one man who suffered serious injuries while crossing the desert.

The San Diego Sheriff's Department contacted agents around four Sunday morning. Deputies needed help handling a distress call from a man stranded in a rural, mountainous area. The man told them he had a serious leg injury and limited food and water.

Agents conducted an intensive search through rough terrain and eventually found the 34-year-old Mexican national. They cared for the man's broken leg until an ambulance reached the area. Paramedics then took the man to the hospital for emergency surgery.

The Border Patrol also had rescue a mother and daughter on Friday. They were lost in the Otay mountains without food or water.

Border Search Trauma and Rescue (BORSTAR) teamed up with sheriff's deputies to conduct an aerial search. Agents hiked to the women's location to provide assistance. Both women were losing consciousness. A medical helicopter airlifted them to the hospital.