The international border between the U.S. and Mexico serves as the frontlines for law enforcement, but San Diego's land and sea face an ongoing environmental crisis. The Tijuana River has long carried sewage and chemical pollution into San Diego, affecting not only residents but also the first responders who work and train in the area.
"We have customs and border control, we have coast guard, we have marines, we have EOD, all these elements of various law enforcement and military services," said retired Navy Captain Dan'l Steward.
Navy SEALs face health risks during training
In 1989, ABC 10News anchor Kimberly Hunt got the rare opportunity to embed in what's considered the most challenging training in the U.S. military: Hell Week with the Navy SEALs.
"At BUDS, Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL training, the days are long and rigorous; they take every ounce of stamina and then go beyond that. Here SEALs are made and Rambos are broken," Hunt reported at the time. "There's a saying here at BUDs: the only easy day was yesterday. Typically, the physical and psychological training goes on 16 hours a day, and it's not the Rambo types that make the grade."
During the training, SEAL candidates were taken by boat miles out to sea in the middle of the night, after days without sleep. Each candidate jumped overboard and swam back toward Coronado. What wasn't clear then was how ocean currents brought contaminated water from the South Bay up the coast.
"These are the folks that are putting their lives on the line. Not just during wartime, but every day," Steward said.
Steward served on the SEAL teams during his 17-year military career. Like all SEALs, he spent hundreds of hours in basic underwater demolition training, long-distance swimming, and stealth tactical swimming — training for which he paid a health price.
"During my time, it was largely gastrointestinal things like that, and infections," Steward said.
Hundreds of illness cases documented
A recent report from the Inspector General revealed that between January 2019 and May 2023, the Naval Special Warfare Center diagnosed more than 1,100 cases of acute gastrointestinal illness among Navy SEAL and special combat candidates in Coronado. Symptoms included nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
Of those cases, nearly 40% were diagnosed within seven days of exposure to ocean water that exceeded state limits for fecal bacteria.
"Sailors and marines are go-to people. When they get the call, they answer, and they will go do it. They will make that happen," said Navy veteran Mark West. "The reality is they don't even know how bad it is, and it won't really come out until all these people get sick."
Border operations in contaminated areas
This year, hundreds of Marines and National Guard members arrived at San Diego's southern border to assist the Department of Homeland Security with immigration enforcement operations. Some set up camp at the Imperial Beach Border Patrol Station.
"A viewer actually reached out to us and mentioned how close the troops were staying to the hot spot here in the area," Adam Campos reported in January. "And if you just look right down this road, we are right up the street from that hot spot here."
"They are here to do their job, and Marines, in general, protect us and our country, and I'm not sure they are aware that they are being put in harm's way," the viewer told Campos.
Border Patrol agents face daily exposure
"We as Border Patrol know this water is contaminated," said Agent Castrejon.
The toxic fumes are part of the job for agents securing the border. In a story about the health issues affecting Border Patrol agents, our reporter was taken to a restricted area along the Tijuana River canal just feet from the border wall, where trash, raw sewage, and dangerous chemicals are caked into the mud.
Our station first reported on this problem in 2017, showing the dissolved boots of Border Patrol agents. We returned this past December to find the same filth and foul smell.
"Just breathing in the air that kicks up off of the soil and the water can really cause a headache, just the exposure to it," Agent Castrejon explained. "We try to limit it as much as possible. We never instruct our agents to go into this water unless it's a lifesaving effort."
"Ultimately, we need to have this problem fixed so we don't have to have these conversations," viewer Tom said.
