A man who the U.S. Coast Guard found on a boat off the shore of Southern California coast has died, the maritime service announced.
The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach found a boat carrying 21 suspected illegal immigrants on Wednesday some 14 miles west of San Clemente Island after it received a tip from a member of the public.
Upon boarding the vessel, the service realized that a 56-year-old man on the boat was unresponsive. Coast Guard crews gave him CPR and a Coast Guard Air Station Ventura MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew airlifted him to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, where he later died, according to a statement issued by the service.
The incident took place while combatting illegal immigration has been a key priority under the second Trump administration. Multiple military agencies have been enlisted to this end.
“This incident highlights the extreme, inherent danger of maritime illegal smuggling and the prioritization of profits over human life by the transnational criminal organizations that orchestrate this illicit maritime activity,” the U.S. Coast Guard said in a statement to NewsNation.
“The U.S. Coast Guard, alongside federal law enforcement partners, remains resolute in our mission to dismantle these criminal networks, secure the maritime domain, and prevent further loss of life,” they added.
Other Enforcement Missions
It comes after the Coast Guard has saved and has attempted to save the lives of other individuals at sea. In July, the Coast Guard suspended a search and rescue mission three days after a boat capsized in San Francisco, leaving one person dead and another three missing.
“Suspending a search is one of the hardest parts of the job and our condolences are with the families of all involved,” said Coast Guard Cmdr. Captain Jarod Toczko in a statement at the time, thanking partner organizations for their participation in the rescue effort.
Also, in July, the Coast Guard rescued a man after he was seen sinking in a catamaran in Hawaii.
The man was evaluated by medical staff, which found he had no medical concerns. The boat sunk with some 30 to 40 gallons of diesel fuel, two batteries, and 3 to 4 gallons of oil aboard.
The service has also been involved in other law enforcement missions. The Coast Guard seized some $2.8 million worth of marijuana in an operation near the Bahamas.
A crew aboard the Coast Guard’s Charles Sexton cutter interdicted a suspected drug-smuggling vessel 80 miles southwest of Great Inagua, Bahamas, and confiscated roughly 2,380 pounds of marijuana which was found in 97 bales in July.
Last month, a 270-foot medium endurance cutter offloaded approximately 7,720 pounds of cocaine and 4,000 pounds of marijuana at Port Everglades in Florida, amounting to more than $63 million in allegedly smuggled drugs.
U.S. Border Patrol personnel detained the other 20 suspects and took them into custody.
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