AKWESASNE, N.Y. (AP) — Six people were rescued from a sinking boat carrying Indian citizens trying to enter the United States illegally in Upstate New York, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said.
The rescue happened April 28 in Akwesasne near the Canadian border when a boat carrying seven people was seen taking on water in the Saint Regis River, CPB said in a news release Thursday.
The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Police Department responded to the scene and called for assistance from Border Patrol and the Hogansburg-Akwesasne Volunteer Fire Department, officials said.
The boat was almost completely submerged when the firefighters arrived, the officials said.
One person swam to shore and the fire department deployed a boat to rescue the other six.
Because the water temperature was just above freezing, all seven people were treated for hypothermia, officials said. There were no life jackets or other safety equipment on the boat, they said.
Six of the people were citizens of India ranging from 19 to 21 years old, CPB said. They were arrested and charged with improper entry. The seventh, a U.S. citizen, was charged with smuggling.
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