Smugglers Leave Mexican Woman Dangling From Border Fence

U.S. Border Patrol agent Nicole Ballistrea watches over the U.S.-Mexico border fence on December 9, 2014 in Nogales, Arizona. (John Moore/Getty Images)

A Mexican woman attempting to cross into the United States illegally was left hanging—literally.

Two smugglers were trying to hoist her over the border fence in Nogales using a hoist rope and a harness on July 8 when incoming Border Patrol agents prompted the smugglers to flee, leaving the woman dangling from the fence.

“Responding agents found the woman suspended approximately 15 feet above the ground and called the Nogales Fire Department to get her down,” Customs and Border Protection stated in a release.

The 37-year-old woman, whose name wasn’t released, was uninjured and is being processed for border violations.

Border Patrol apprehended over 400,000 trying to illegally cross the southern border last fiscal year. About half were Mexican.

A U.S. Border Patrol vehicle drives along the U.S.-Mexico border fence on Dec. 9, 2014 near Nogales, Arizona. (John Moore/Getty Images)

The number of apprehensions fell precipitously at the beginning of this year, after President Donald Trump took office with a promise of boosting immigration law enforcement and border protection.

During March, April, and May—usually the most active months for border crossers—agents apprehended 37,858 people, compared with 111,742 during the same period last year.

A U.S. Border Patrol agent parks on a hill top near the border fence in Nogales, Arizona, on Feb. 17, 2017, on the US/Mexico border. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)

Since May, the numbers began to pick up again, but still remain the lowest in decades. This year, the southern border is looking to be the quietest it’s been since at least the early 1970s.