The United States Coast Guard rescued three Cuban rafters on Wednesday, whose boat, in which they were traveling with at least 24 other people, capsized two miles from Boca Chica in their attempt to reach the Florida Keys in the midst of the emergency due to Hurricane Ian. The rescued “were taken to the local hospital for symptoms of exhaustion and dehydration and are still looking for the other castaways,” the agency reported.
The US authorities previously reported on the search for at least 23 Cubans missing after a shipwreck in the Florida Keys, while four others traveling on the same boat managed to make landfall, according to the Customs and Border Protection Office (CBP).
The head of the Border Patrol of the Miami sector, Walter Slosar, reported that his agents went to the landing area on Wednesday, where the Cubans said that “their boat sank due to inclement weather.” According to the local television channel WPLG, the medical conditions of the rafters who reached land “are not very clear.”
The Florida Keys are on high alert for Hurricane Ian, the fourth of the Atlantic hurricane season, and with heavy rains that continue to hit the extensive chain of keys in the south of the state.
Slosar confirmed on his social networks that as part of this bloodletting of rafters, seven arrived at Pompano Beach on Tuesday and were immediately arrested. “Don’t risk your life attempting this journey at sea. Storm surge coupled with king tide can create treacherous marine conditions even after a storm passes,” the Border Patrol chief warned.
The rescued “were taken to the local hospital for symptoms of exhaustion and dehydration and are still looking for the other castaways”
The Coast Guard also noted on Twitter in the fiscal year starting in October 2021, “we have lost 64 people at sea, crews are doubling down on efforts to ensure that number does not increase.”
This incident on the high seas occurs a few days after a family stole a boat from the port of Mariel to try to reach the United States and of which it is not yet known where and how they are.
The exodus of Cubans is already alarming. According to figures for the fiscal year that began in October 2021, the number of 6,052 rafters intercepted in their attempt to reach the US already exceeds the total of the previous five years. In 2017 they arrested 1,468; in 2018 there were 259; in 2019, 313; in 2020, 49; and in 2021, 838, according to official figures.
Ian hit Cuba last Tuesday as a powerful category 3 hurricane and made landfall in La Coloma, Pinar del Río, with maximum sustained winds of over 200 kilometers per hour.
The eye of the meteorological phenomenon made landfall this Wednesday near Cayo Costa, in southwestern Florida, with winds of 150 miles per hour (240 km / h), reported the US National Hurricane Center.
#breaking We are searching and will update as we get more information. #DontTakeToTheSea https://t.co/QPdx9HFbFd
— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) September 28, 2022
________________________
Collaborate with our work:
The team of 14ymedio is committed to doing serious journalism that reflects the reality of deep Cuba. Thank you for joining us on this long road. We invite you to continue supporting us, but this time becoming a member of our journal. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
