© 2024 WLRN
MIAMI | SOUTH FLORIDA
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Dozens of Haitian migrants were rescued while trying to reach the Florida Keys

Boat At Sea Florida Haitian Migrants.jfif
U.S. Coast Guard
/
The Miami Herald
A U.S. Coast Guard boat approaches a sailing vessel packed with migrants law enforcement sources say are from Haiti off the coast of Key Largo Monday, Nov. 21, 2022.

More than a dozen Haitians, desperate to reach U.S. soil jumped into the water off the Florida Keys on Monday under the night sky after their dilapidated wooden sailboat grounded on a popular sandbar in Islamorada.

The fleeing migrants set off a chaotic scramble by law enforcement officials. Sheriff’s deputies, state Fish and Wildlife police and federal agents pointed flashlights to light up the dark ocean; while a U.S. Customs and Border Protection helicopter circled above to help federal crews capture as many migrants as possible.

The boat’s arrival, shortly after 5 p.m. near the Whale Harbor Bridge, culminated a harrowing journey from Haiti and a day in which U.S. Coast Guard crews, battling rough seas and high winds, tried to prevent the sailboat from capsizing as it struggled to stay afloat in high swells off Key Largo.

Read more from our news partner at The Miami Herald.

Editor's note: NPR's A Martinez talked to David Goodhue, a reporter with FLKeysNews.com and the Miami Herald, about his reporting on Morning Edition. Click the 'Listen' button to hear that conversation.

Copyright 2022 NPR

More On This Topic