The bodies of 17 Haitian migrants were found dead and 25 others were rescued at sea in a rescue operation that continued on Sunday after a boat capsized off the Bahamas, Bahamian authorities said.
The boat that “would have capsized in rough seas,” according to the press release issued by Prime Minister Philip Davis, departed from the most populated island in the archipelago “with about 60 people on board.”
“Its final destination is believed to have been Miami, Florida,” the Bahamian head of government said.
A child among the victims
The Bahamas, an archipelago of 700 islets (including 39 inhabited) located 80 km southeast of the Florida coast and north of Cuba, are regularly used as transit land for migrants seeking to reach the United States.
In Haiti, a country plagued by gang crime where nearly half the population is food insecure, many residents regularly try to reach Florida illegally by sea, often stopping in the Bahamas or the Turks and Caicos Islands, under the British authority.
“I understand that the situation that many of these migrants face encourages them to take such great risks,” said Philip Davis, who called “those who are considering making such a trip, however, not to do so.”
Source: BFM TV
