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The sinking of a trawler-like boat loaded with people in search of a better life in the United States was the latest evidence that tougher border security is driving smugglers into the ocean.
Smugglers increasingly employ boats like the one that broke up on a Point Loma reef Sunday to get people and drugs into the United States undetected, according to border officials. The accident sent 32 people into the cold, rough waters, killing four.
Arrests at sea in the San Diego sector nearly doubled in 2020 from the year before, to 1,273 from 662, according to data provided by Shane Crottie, a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Local operations seized 118 vessels in 309 smuggling attempts last year, up from 80 boats and 195 attempts in 2019. So far in fiscal year 2021, which began on Oct. 1, there have been 156 local maritime smuggling attempts, 909 arrests and 76 vessels seized.
A suspected smuggling operation that resulted in at least three deaths off the San Diego coast Sunday came after the Border Patrol, Coast Guard and other agencies warned that an alarming increase in maritime smuggling could have deadly consequences.
The agencies announced Friday that they were dedicating extra resources to coastal land, sea and air – helicopters and planes – patrols through Monday. Those resources were tapped Sunday when an overloaded cabin cruiser broke apart in rough seas, prompting a harrowing rescue operation near the Cabrillo National Monument.
Rescuers found a large debris field of splintered wood and personal effects. Seven people were plucked from the turbulent waters; three did not survive. One person was rescued from a cliff and 22 made it to shore on their own. Twenty-seven people were taken to hospitals with hypothermia or other injuries.
People in the water drowning : Days after smuggling crackdown, at least 3 die, dozens hurt when boat capsizes off San Diego John Bacon, USA TODAY
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A suspected smuggling operation that resulted in at least three deaths off the San Diego coast came after the Border Patrol, Coast Guard and other agencies warned that an alarming increase in maritime smuggling could have deadly consequences.
The agencies announced Friday that they were dedicating extra resources to coastal land, sea and air patrols – helicopters and planes – through Monday. Those resources were tapped Sunday when an overloaded cabin cruiser broke apart in rough seas, prompting a harrowing rescue operation near the Cabrillo National Monument.
Sickness, death and fear. Go figure.
Locked away with the ceaseless bad news, it s easy to forget that life is its own champion fearless, continuously moving forward, tending to its own business.
Marriages are made, in smaller, more intimate gatherings.
Babies are born, without the parade of visitors.
Milestones are marked, quietly.
On this page, proof positive that life, like love, always finds a way.
BIRTHS
Parents: Shayna Modarresi and Brian Stark of San Francisco
Born: At 5:17 p.m. on Nov. 16, 2020, weighing 7 pounds, 14 ounces and measuring 21 inches long.
Paternal grandparents:
Maternal grandparents: Homa Modarresi and the late Amad Modarresi of Los Altos, California.
People in the water drowning : Days after smuggling crackdown, at least 3 die, dozens hurt when boat capsizes off San Diego John Bacon, USA TODAY
Replay Video UP NEXT
A suspected smuggling operation that resulted in at least three deaths off the San Diego coast came after the Border Patrol, Coast Guard and other agencies warned that an alarming increase in maritime smuggling could have deadly consequences.
The agencies announced Friday that they were dedicating extra resources to coastal land, sea and air patrols – helicopters and planes – through Monday. Those resources were tapped Sunday when an overloaded cabin cruiser broke apart in rough seas, prompting a harrowing rescue operation near the Cabrillo National Monument.