SAN DIEGO – A migrant mother who was trying to illegally enter the United States while scaling a border fence fell off and was impaled.
KFMB reported that the 26-year-old from Guatemala fell onto pieces of rebar and concertina wire which were being used to replace a border fence.
The wire and rebar pierced the woman’s side and buttocks in front of her children, ages 3 and 5. U.S. Border Patrol contacted paramedics and took her to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Her children also were checked at a hospital and turned over to immigration authorities.
“Entering our country illegally, particularly over our walls, is not only dangerous, but also very foolish,” said Rodney Scott, San Diego’s Chief Border Patrol Agent, according to KFMB. “This woman placed her own life and her children’s lives in peril. She could have easily died if not for the quick response by our agents and EMS.”
US Customs and Border Protection closed road and pedestrian bridges on Sunday at the San Ysidro port of entry, one of the largest land border crossings between San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico.
Groups of Central American migrants have been converging on the Mexican border city for days in their quest to gain entry to the United States. Their presence has drawn Mexican troops, protesters and fiery rhetoric from President Donald Trump and Mexican officials.
As crowds amassed at San Ysidro, around 500 migrants overwhelmed federal and local Mexican police blockades and rushed toward the border, said freelance reporter Alfredo Alvarez, who is in the crowd.
