Dehydrated siblings rescued by Border Patrol in remote wilderness

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) -- A pair of young siblings from Mexico were rescued by Border Patrol agents during last week's heat wave as they were attempting to enter the U.S. illegally, authorities said.

On Wednesday around 4 p.m., San Diego Sector agents assigned to the Brownfield Border Patrol Station encountered a severely dehydrated 16-year-old boy who was unaccompanied in the remote Otay Mountain Wilderness, located east of the Otay Mesa Port of Entry.

According to a news release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, agents requested emergency medical services and the boy was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment due to his condition.

The rescue came as communities in the valleys and mountain areas of San Diego County were under heat advisories on Wednesday, with an extreme heat warning of triple-digit temperatures in the desert communities.

The boy told agents his 12-year-old sister was left behind on the trail they had been following. He said she was also very dehydrated and could no longer walk, CBP said.

A CBP Air and Marine helicopter was deployed to the wilderness to locate the girl with the assistance of San Diego Sector Border Patrol search, trauma and rescue agents.

The young girl was found conscious and in stable condition, according to CBP. She was airlifted from the wilderness and taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital for medical care.

The pair of siblings were released from the hospital last Friday and will be processed following San Diego Sector guidelines, authorities said.