Jakelin Amei Rosmery Caal Maquin showed symptoms of dehydration and shock before she was transported from a remote area near the border to a border station.
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When she arrived at the border station three hours later, she had stopped breathing. After two revival attempts, Caal was pronounced dead by her fatherโs side. She had been transferred to a hospital in El Paso, Texas.
Officials at Antelope Wells say Caal, who had a fever of 106, had access to water before transport. A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Patrol defended the lack of care rendered to Caal.
โDue to the remoteness of the area,โ said a spokesperson,โ meeting emergency medical personnel [at the border station] in Lordsburg was the best means to provide the child with emergency care.โ
According to CBP, Caalโs father, a native Quecha speaker, signed a form stating his daughter had no significant health concerns. A Guatemalan official told BuzzFeed news that Caalโs father may not have understood the questions being asked him.
According to ProPublica, migrant deaths increased 20 percent even as the number of migrants captured at the border plummeted, due in large part to authorsโ decision to steer migrants toward โbarren, isolated terrainโ and away from more amenable areas.
While CBP strains to answer questions concerning its personnel and practices, and amid a flurry of questions directed its way, the Department of Homeland Security has stepped in to debase the deceased and her family.
โYou know, this is just a very sad example of the dangers of this journey,โ said DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen during an appearance on Fox & Friends. โThis family chose to cross illegally.โ
Citing the same complications mentioned by CBP, Nielsen continued. โWe will continue to look into the situation, but again, I cannot stress how dangerous this journey is when migrants choose to come here illegally.โ
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