6-month-old girl in critical condition after crossing Rio Grande into Texas

A 6-month-old girl was in critical condition after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border with her father in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Saturday.

The girl was among a group of 21 people apprehended near the Roma Port of Entry after crossing the Rio Grande into the United States, according to a CBP statement.

The baby and her father were transported to the Rio Grande Valley Sector’s Central Processing Center, where medical staff determined that she needed hospital treatment, the statement said.

She was taken with her father to Edinburg Regional Children’s Hospital and later transferred by helicopter to Driscoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi.

“Since there was no more space in the helicopter, CBP officers drove the child’s father to the hospital to be with his daughter where she continues to receive medical care,” the statement said.

At least six children have died — five in recent months — after making the treacherous journey to the U.S. and being apprehended by federal immigration authorities.