Migrant girl dies of dehydration in custody

A 7-year-old girl from Guatemala died of dehydration and shock after she was taken into Border Patrol custody last week for crossing from Mexico into the United States illegally with her father and a large group of migrants along a remote span of New Mexico desert, US Customs and Border Protection said yesterday.

The child’s death is likely to intensify scrutiny of detention conditions at Border Patrol stations and CBP facilities that are increasingly overwhelmed by large numbers of families seeking asylum in the United States.

According to CBP records, the girl and her father were taken into custody about 10pm on December 6 south of Lordsburg, New Mexico, as part of a group of 163 people who approached US agents to turn themselves in. More than eight hours later, the child began having seizures at 6.25am, CBP records show. Emergency responders, who arrived soon after, measured her body temperature at 40.9 degrees C, and according to a statement from CBP, she ‘‘reportedly had not eaten or consumed water for several days.’’

After a helicopter flight to Providence Hospital in El Paso, Texas, the child went into cardiac arrest and ‘‘was revived,’’ according to the agency. ‘‘However, the child did not recover and died at the hospital less than 24 hours after being transported,’’ CBP said.

The agency did not release the name of the girl or her father, but the father remains in El Paso awaiting a meeting with Guatemalan consular officials, according to CBP. The agency is investigating the incident to ensure appropriate policies were followed, it said. Food and water are typically provided to migrants in Border Patrol custody, and it wasn’t immediately clear yesterday if the girl received provisions and a medical exam before the onset of seizures. – Washington Post