The crews with the US Coast Guard sent 34 Cuban migrants to Bahia de Cabañas, Cuba, this week.
- 34 migrants were sent to Bahia de Cabañas, Cuba this week
- Per the U.S. Coast Guard: number of Cubans attempting to migrate to the U.S. is up
According to a press release, the Coast Guard’s actions were the result of four separate migrant interdictions at sea within the last week in the south Florida Straits.
In each instance, the Coast Guard said they helped secure the U.S. border and prevented these sea voyages from ending in tragedy.
"Safety of life at sea continues to be the Coast Guard's primary concern," said Capt. Aldante Vinciguerra, chief of response for the 7th Coast Guard District. "Migrants aboard overloaded and unseaworthy vessels are putting their lives at extreme risk of injury and death. The Coast Guard with our partner agencies continue to patrol vigilantly to rescue and repatriate undocumented migrants who take to the sea."
Once aboard a Coast Guard cutter, all migrants receive food, water, shelter and basic medical attention.
Since Oct. 1, at least 5,241 Cubans attempted to migrate to the U.S. over the waterways. That’s a sharp increase, the Coast Guard reports, from 4,473 attempted migrates in 2015.
The vessel that came into contact with the migrants was the Coast Guard Cutter Kathleen, a 154-foot fast response cutter homeported in Key West.