SAN LUIS POTOSÍ, Mexico.- A group of 43 rafters from Cuba were detained early Tuesday morning after making landfall in the Florida Keys, authorities confirmed.
Andrew Scharnweber, acting chief of the U.S. Border Patrol in the Miami sector, reported on social network X that the migrants They arrived at Sombrero Beach in Marathon in a wooden fishing boat.
A photo taken on the beach shows the small white and blue boat, with the sign “Havana” painted on the back.
The group was taken into custody by the U.S. Border Patrol and is expected to be processed by U.S. agents in the coming days.
Earlier today, 43 Cuban migrants were taken into US Border Patrol custody after making landfall in the Florida Keys. The group of migrants arrived on a wooden fishing vessel at Sombrero Beach in Marathon. We appreciate the support from responding agencies.#Cuba #floridakeys pic.twitter.com/jW5JdZTRQM
—Andrew Scharnweber (@USBPChiefMIP) September 17, 2024
This new arrival of migrants to the United States is part of a migration crisis that has surpassed previous exoduses and continues to accumulate record numbers this year.
In August 2024, 11,744 Cuban migrants arrived in the United States, representing an average of 378 people per day, according to the most recent data provided by Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
This is the lowest figure since July 2023, when 7,479 Cubans arrived in the North American country.
Until December 2022, most Cuban migrants entered the United States by illegally crossing the southern border, but the implementation of the immigration program words humanitarian aid, in January 2023, managed to significantly reduce these mass arrivals.
The recent drop in Cuban arrivals in August could be related to this program, which was temporarily suspended in early August by the White House and shortly after reinstated.
With the migrants who arrived in August, the total number of Cubans who have entered the United States in the current fiscal year, which began in October 2023, amounts to 208,308. If the current pace of arrivals continues, fiscal year 2024 is projected to conclude with more than 227,000 arrivals.
