By Karen Gleason
Val Verde County Sheriff’s Office deputies are still dealing with hundreds of migrants crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico, one official said Friday.
VVSO Chief Deputy Waylon Bullard said deputies encountered 493 immigrants during May.
“The deputies are still encountering large groups of immigrants on the vega and under the international bridge,” Bullard told the 830 Times.
Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez said previously the deputies wait with the groups of migrants until Border Patrol agents can arrive to transport the migrants for processing. The migrants arriving here come from many different countries, but they are all crossing the Rio Grande to enter Val Verde County.
Bullard said there is still no criminal activity in the county that can be directly linked to the migrants, but said the deputies are spending the majority of the time on their shifts dealing with the issue.
Asked if there is any indication the number of migrants is slowing, Bullard said “No, none whatsoever. If anything, it seems to be increasing.”
The chief deputy said the sheriff’s office is also working to train deputies to deal with situations they may encounter on the river because of the increasing numbers.
All of the sheriff’s office deputies recently went through a four-hour basic water rescue class conducted by a National Park Service water survival expert from Big Bend National Park.
Bullard said the classes were held in the waters of the Rio Grande just below Amistad Dam and emphasized the importance of keeping the officers safe if they were in the position to rescue someone from the Rio Grande.
“Our job as law enforcement officers is to help save people, to get them to safety, and our deputies have encountered that type of situation,” Bullard said.
Bullard said the instructor of the class also helped the VVSO re-evaluate the equipment the agency will need to provide deputies to facilitate water rescues.
He noted on May 27, Border Patrol agents informed the VVSO of the body of a drowned man in the river off the Moody Ranch south of Del Rio.
Deputies and Border Patrol agents recovered the body, which is believed to be that of an immigrant who drowned while attempting to cross the river, Bullard said.
He added no obvious signs of foul play were seen on the body, which has been sent for an autopsy.
