Agents patrol the Colorado

May 16, 2010 9:53 PM
BY STEPHANIE A. WILKEN - SUN STAFF WRITER

On a bright spring morning in Yuma County, Border Patrol agents John Rodrigue and Camilo Pardo carefully unload a boat into the Colorado River.

The smell of marijuana is pungent on a second boat still in the river, part of a narcotics seizure just hours ago.

When most residents think of the border, they may think of the border wall, with agents patrolling in trucks and on foot. But there's a natural dividing line between the United States and Mexico: the Colorado River.

And agents patrol it 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Rodrigue, director of Marine Operations for the Yuma Sector, said their job is to find "anything or anyone trying to come in illegally, between the ports, on this river."

They're looking for people, contraband and narcotics. In fiscal year 2009, Yuma Sector agents had 213 apprehensions and seized 101 pounds of narcotics.

In the area between Morelos Dam and the Ocean-to-Ocean Bridge, Rodrigue said, they're not seeing as many people trying to cross as they did last year.

What used to be groups of 15 to 20 people is now around two to three, he said. "Overall, the traffic in Yuma is down tremendously."

But there is one difference: the type of person crossing. "We're seeing people who were previously deported, and they want to come back."

Rodrigue said agents use skills in addition to their sign cutting, or tracking. After all, you can't see tracks on the water.

"One thing about this river: You can't cut it," he said.

Agents follow the bank and look for anything out of the ordinary in the reeds and river vegetation.

"When you see something on the water, it's going to be dangerous and exciting," Rodrigue said. "It's a lot more dangerous than land."

Their goal is that people trying to cross not make it into the water, he said - keeping everyone safe.

As the only full-time law enforcement patrol on the water, they stay busy helping others who are there to enjoy the river - not just those trying to come to the United States via the Colorado.

In addition to the training that all Border Patrol agents receive, for agents with the Marine Unit, training includes boat familiarization, safety equipment, emergency action drills, marine tactics/officer safety, boarding scenarios, federal law and policy and more. The unit started patrolling in the Yuma Sector in July 2006.

That training is necessary, given the environment.

"There's no brakes on the boat," said Rodrigue. "It takes a lot of skill to do this."

Agents will stay three years with the unit. Pardo has been with the unit for almost a year.

At the end of the day, it's not just that every agent makes it home safely - it's about the safety of everyone on the water.

"Being on the river, it's a lot of fun, but you have to take it seriously," he said. "That's one of our primary concerns."
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Picture of their patrol boat @

http://www.yumasun.com/news/agents-6101 ... atrol.html