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Public Safety

S.D. Medical Examiner ID's Two Childrens' Bodies

The Mexican Consulate in San Diego says the two bodies found near the border fence in Imperial Beach are the two children who were swept away by the rains in Tijuana last month.

The children's mother, Rocio Mendez, crossed the border from Tijuana to provide a DNA sample to the San Diego Medical Examiner's office a little more than a week ago.

A torrent of rain water swept away three of her children in Tijuana the evening of January 20th. Rescuers found the body of Mendez's 10-year-old daughter that same night. But 2-year-old Hector and 5-year-old Tiffany were missing.

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Volunteers with Desert Angels, a group that normally searches for migrants in rural areas, found the childrens' bodies in San Diego in two separate discoveries. The swift river of runoff carried the childrens' bodies from Tijuana, across the border and deposited them near the border fence.

KPBS has created a public safety coverage policy to guide decisions on what stories we prioritize, as well as whose narratives we need to include to tell complete stories that best serve our audiences. This policy was shaped through months of training with the Poynter Institute and feedback from the community. You can read the full policy here.