Several people who crossed the border from Canada into Minnesota fell victim to the subfreezing cold and were rescued from a flooded bog early Tuesday, officials said.
U.S. Border Patrol agents and various local emergency agencies were dispatched shortly before 5 a.m. Tuesday and rescued the group of nine men ages 19 to 46 "in distress after exposure to harsh weather conditions" west of Warroad, read a statement from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). All nine were traveling on foot.
The agency said it confirmed that seven of the nine are citizens of Mexico, lacked the proper documentation to enter the United States and were handed over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Verifying the nationalities of the other two will be delayed until their medical conditions improve, CBP spokesman Steven Bansbach told the Star Tribune late Wednesday afternoon. One of the two required an airlift from the bog, the agency said.
All nine, suffering from exposure to the cold, were taken to regional medical facilities for treatment, the statement continued. The temperature at the time of the rescue was roughly 28 degrees under clear skies, with a light wind blowing, according to the National Weather Service.
The plea for help came from one person in the group who contacted the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) by phone, the CBP said.
"Border Patrol agents provided immediate care as medical first responders and contacted local emergency medical services and local law enforcement agencies for additional assistance as needed," the federal agency's statement read.
"This is an excellent example of our agents and local partners working together to prevent tragedy," Chief Patrol Agent Scott D. Garrett said in a statement issued by the agency's regional office in Chicago. "The outcome could have been much worse if not for the quick notification from RCMP and the response of our agents."
The agency did not disclose the group members' ultimate destination or how they came to be in Canada.
So far this fiscal year, according to CBP data, Border Patrol agents in North Dakota and Minnesota have stopped 100 people trying to illegally cross the Canada-U.S. border. That compares with 66 for all of 2022, 79 in 2021 and 209 in 2020.
In January 2022, four people in a family from India who were among several people trying to enter the United States illegally were found frozen to death in a blizzard near the Minnesota-Canada border.
Jagdish Patel, 39; his wife, Vaishaliben Patel, 37; and their children, Vihangi Patel, 11, and Dharmik Patel, 3, were located in the snow on the Canadian side, about 6 miles east of Emerson, Manitoba. They became separated from their group during a night when the temperature hit 10 degrees below zero and windchills were likely 30 below or colder.
A U.S. Border Patrol agent stopped a passenger van in a rural area south of the border between Lancaster, Minn., and Pembina, N.D., and found two undocumented Indian nationals and Floridian Steve Shand inside.
Five more survivors were discovered on foot nearby. One man had children's clothing, diapers and toys in a backpack. After finding no child in the group, authorities began a search and found the Patel family's bodies about four hours later.
Shand was arrested and charged with human smuggling. He was released from custody after posting an unsecured $25,000 bond and is due back in court on May 22.
Three months ago, police in India arrested two men on human trafficking and other charges in connection with the operation.
