http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsbu ... 90627.html

Pa. on guard at border

By Brian Bowling
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, January 28, 2007


YUMA, Ariz. -- Standing watch along the country's southern border, Pennsylvania soldiers and airmen have seen people sneak into the United States by swimming the Colorado River and irrigation canals naked, with their clothes in plastic bags.
They've spotted people crouching in bushes for hours, waiting for an opportunity to cross. From U.S. Border Patrol briefings, they know that would-be border crossers run a gantlet of bandits and unscrupulous guides, and they sometimes wander in the desert until they die of thirst.

"They're absolutely passionate about wanting to get over here," said Spc. Ryan Noyes, 30, of Washington, D.C., a soldier in the Philadelphia-based Troop A, 1st Squadron, 104th Cavalry.

There are 108 soldiers and airmen from the Pennsylvania National Guard patrolling the border through February. All volunteered for an assignment that plays on emotions, yet stirs their patriotism.

It is hard not to feel sympathy for the illegal aliens risking their lives to provide for their families, some Guard members said. At the same time, though, the troops say they're determined to seal the border against illegal entry.

"I just don't think that's right, that illegals are allowed to come in and get a free ride, more or less," said Sgt. Randy Slaughter, 35, of Carmichaels, Greene County. "I don't think it's fair to the other immigrants who come in legally. I think that if they're going to be here, they should come through the proper channels and pay their dues like everybody else does."

In May, President Bush authorized the deployment of up to 6,000 National Guard troops along the border, citing an "urgent" need to stem the flow of millions of illegal immigrants into the United States. The Guard is filling in for the Border Patrol while it hires 6,000 agents to take over the watch.

National Guard members keep a keen watch on the border. They make crossings difficult by putting up barriers. They do not, however, have authority to detain people. Border agents apprehend illegal immigrants.

Pennsylvania Guard troops are manning 11 observation points along the Salinity Canal, one of the main obstacles that border runners face in trying to reach Yuma. This part of the border crosses through a farming area where lemons grow and sheep graze.

Noyes saw seven people try to cross the border during a 24-hour shift at Observation Point 12 last week. Six people were caught -- two of them made it through a nearby lemon grove before being apprehended while wading through an irrigation ditch.

One person stayed in the brush, looked around and then returned to Mexico, Noyes said. They suspect he's a scout for a drug runner.

"We're fishing for him. If we find him, we'll be real excited," he said.

This is the second border deployment for the Pennsylvania Guard.

Staff Sgt. Terry Workman, 27, of Richeyville, Washington County, volunteered for the first border deployment in October and this one. He said it's easy to empathize with the people he has helped stop.

"These guys, they're just trying to come in and get paychecks, send some money home for a couple of months and then go back," he said.

What keeps Workman at Observation Point 20 is the possibility of drug runners, potential terrorists and other criminals seeking entry.

"There are dangerous people trying to cross all the time," he said. "We have a job to do, and our job is to help keep it safe down here."

Ron Colburn, the Yuma Sector chief for the U.S. Border Patrol, said agents in his sector arrested about 5,000 people last year who had criminal records in the United States.

"One in 10 absolutely do not want to be caught. They're bad people. They are willing to physically resist, evade or attack in order to harm or kill a Border Patrol agent," Colburn said.

Criminals attack other illegal aliens who are crossing the border in search of jobs, he said. His agency documented 200 such attacks by bandits on groups of illegal aliens last year, Colburn said.

"It's a very violent border," he said.

Yuma Sector agents haven't apprehended anybody who has been positively identified as a terrorist. In the past two years, they've detained or arrested people from more than 100 countries who were trying to illegally enter the United States somewhere along the 118 miles of border the agents patrol, Colburn said.

Along with the inherent danger of their duty, the Guardsmen must stay warm and alert during the night. Each four-man team spends 24 hours at its designated observation point. The teams break the shift into four-hour watches with two members on watch while the other two sleep.

Swathed in cold-weather clothing and body armor, the troops light campfires as the desert rapidly cools. Temperatures can dip to the 20s after sunset. The fires also deter people from attempting a crossing. The troops keep alert through a routine of radio checks, infrared sweeps and other duties.

Senior Airman Jim Foster, 38, of Baldwin Borough, said the duty isn't as bad as it sounds.

"It's cold out here at night, but you know you have to make do. Put on your layers of clothes and do your job," he said.