At Least 8 Dead After Suspected Smuggling Boats Capsize Near San Diego

Local authorities reported that at least eight immigrants were killed in the sinking of two panga boats near Black’s Beach, San Diego, California.

San Diego Fire Department lifeguards reported NBC One Saturday morning, a woman called 911 to report that a panga vessel with 8-10 people aboard had capsized. Smuggling operations often use small fishing boats. 

San Diego Police Officer Sarah Foster told The Los Angeles Times The woman who called came from the other boat. But, when emergency crews arrived, both vessels were aground and there were no survivors. Officials believed that 23 people were on both boats. The remaining passengers could have escaped.

Authorities had difficulty accessing the shore due to fog and high tide. After climbing north along the coast, lifeguards located the bodies and overturned the boats. CAuthorities reported that rews are still looking for seven more victims. Sunday

OnScene TV’s Daniel Eddy, San Diego Fire-Rescue Deputy Chief Operations, stated that no helicopters could be lifted by authorities.

“We had boats in the water, but at first light, once all the conditions clear, we will have Coast Guard out here and San Diego Fire-Rescue and lifeguards doing a joint search through the water for any possible victims that are left,” Eddy stated.

“We tried to launch helicopters both from San Diego Fire and Coast Guard but due to the conditions, they couldn’t get up,” Eddy stated. “Coast Guard finally got up with their copter but due to the conditions of the fog in the area it was hard for their [forward-looking thermal imaging cameras] to get through to see anything in the water.”

The Times was told by U.S. Border Patrol officials that they have no additional information or evidence of law enforcement detentions.

“This is one of the worst maritime tragedies that I can think of in California, and certainly here in San Diego.” James Gartland, Chief of San Diego Lifeguards, stated during a Press conference Sunday

Coast Guard Capt. James Spitler stated that the number of human traffickers in Southern California has increased by 771% since 2017.

“Since 2021, we’ve had 23 lives lost at sea,” Spitler said.

President Joe Biden has seen an unprecedented increase in the number of immigrant encounters at America’s southern border. 

Recorded by U.S. Customs and Border Protection 251,487 encounters The United States had the highest ever number of illegal aliens in December in U.S. History. Combined with the first two months of the fiscal year 2023 — October and November — those numbers put the U.S. on track to have more than 2.87 million illegal alien encounters on the U.S. southern border.

Since December last year, there have been ten consecutive months of more than 200,000 illegal alien encounters at the southern border.

The Trump-era Title 42 health order that allowed U.S Border Patrol agents to turn back migrants at the border allows for the administration to be concerned that the numbers could increase.

The Biden administration is reportedly Consider reviving stricter regulations regarding illegal entry of families into the U.S., after having scrapped similar policies more than a year back. Biden would reverse his decision to reinstate the policy. Campaigned To stop long detentions and not detaining kids.

“From At Most 8 Dead after Suspected Smuggler Boats Capsize Near San Diego“

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