The U.S. Coast Guard announced the deployment of additional forces to the Rio Grande River in eastern Texas to ensure operational control of the border where President Donald Trump declared a national emergency.
This surge, Operation River Wall, will bolster Coast Guard efforts to control, secure, and defend 260 miles of the Rio Grande River that makes up the U.S. border there.
The guard referenced its “unmatched expertise” and capabilities to deter, interdict, and defeat illegal immigration, drug smuggling, and other threats to the U.S.
“The U.S. Coast Guard is the best in the world at tactical boat operations and maritime interdiction at sea, along our coasts, and in riverine environments,” said Adm. Kevin E. Lunday, acting commandant of the Coast Guard.
As part of this mobilization, the Coast Guard is deploying additional response boats, shallow watercraft, command and control assets, and tactical teams in support of national security objectives.
The action represents an unprecedented commitment of Coast Guard personnel and resources to the Rio Grande region.
The Coast Guard is leading operations, working with U.S. Border Patrol and the Department of War under U.S. Northern Command, to control, secure, and defend the U.S. border in Cameron and Hidalgo counties in eastern Texas, extending to the Gulf of America.
The mission is designed to reinforce federal control of key river sectors while applying the service’s experience in maritime interdiction to inland waters.
The announcement follows a series of high-profile Coast Guard operations this year targeting transnational smuggling networks and conducting major rescue missions.
In recent months, the service off-loaded more than 44,000 pounds of cocaine and nearly 4,000 pounds of marijuana valued at more than $500 million after interdictions in the eastern Pacific.
In another case, crews seized about 17,000 pounds of cocaine and 2,500 pounds of marijuana worth $132 million during operations in the Caribbean.
The Coast Guard reported intercepting more than 100 metric tons of cocaine in the just-ended fiscal year, one of its largest annual totals on record.
At the same time, Coast Guard personnel have carried out multiple lifesaving missions in Alaska’s remote waters. Crews recently rescued four people from a sinking tugboat about 130 miles south of Cordova in the Gulf of Alaska.
In a broader effort this fall, Coast Guard and Alaska National Guard units flew nearly 60 hours of search and rescue missions during severe flooding in western Alaska, saving 51 lives.
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