Border Agents Rescue Children Abandoned on Inflatable Raft in Rio Grande River

Four migrant children were rescued by border patrol agents in the Rio Grande River after being "left by a human smuggler," Chief Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez announced.

Chavez shared a photo of the children, who appear to be floating on an inflatable ring, huddled together, one on top of the other. Only one of them – the smallest one, who looks like a toddler – has shoes on.

The chief congratulated the "quick-thinking" of the Fort Brown Border Patrol agents who rescued the children, who "are now safe."

According to newly released data, Border Patrol agents encountered 99,074 unaccompanied children in Fiscal Year 2024. Around 25,000 of those encounters took place in the Rio Grande Valley.

Per Border Report, RGV Sector agents have encountered half of the more than 425,000 unaccompanied children who crossed the border illegally over the past three years.

The National Immigration Forum (NIF) has detailed that most unaccompanied minors encountered in the U.S. border come from Central America for a variety of reasons. Some are fleeing persecution and violence, while others are attracted by economic opportunity. In some cases, children are entrusted to smugglers to bring them to the U.S with the intention of reuniting with family members who are already there.