SAN DIEGO — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Otay Mesa port of entry Monday performed life-saving medical aid on a traveler who arrived at the border crossing without a pulse.
“Many of our CBP officers are trained medical first responders, because the reality of being at the border of the U.S. is that we are on the front line of all kinds of different situations,” said Pete Flores, Director of Field Operations for the San Diego Field Office. “In this instance, I am glad that we were able to assist this traveler in distress until medical personnel arrived.”
On April 11, at about 9 a.m., a father and son arrived at the border crossing in a black Toyota Solara. The 53-year-old father, driving the vehicle, reported to the CBP officer that his 31-year-old son, the passenger, was having a medical emergency.
CBP officers referred the driver aside to the secondary inspection area, where CBP officers trained in providing medical aid arrived, and found that the son was unresponsive with no pulse.
The CBP officers, trained as an emergency medical technician, an emergency medical responder, and CPR certified performed life-saving medical measures, including CPR and the use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in the time between when officers dialed 9-1-1 and San Diego Fire and Rescue personnel arrived on scene.
Upon their arrival, San Diego Fire and Rescue personnel took over continuing to provide aid until they found a pulse and ultimately transported the man, a U.S. citizen, to a local hospital for further care and treatment.
CBP officers at the Otay Mesa port of entry process approximately 15 million people entering the U.S. each year.