U.S. Coast Guard Pauses Search for the Missing Cuban Migrants
The U.S. Coast Guard has announced that it will be stopping its search for the missing Cuban migrants, who went missing several days ago near Key West after their vessel capsized.
Authorities involved in the operation said that they had rescued two women and six men on Thursday. They had also recovered two bodies.
Capt. Adam Chamie, the Coast Guard's commander of the Key West sector, said that the U.S. Coast Guard, along with the Department of Defense had searched continuously the past three days, according to an Associated Press report.
He said that their decision to stop the search operation was made after considering all the facts. Chamie had also offered their condolences to the families and loved ones affected.
The Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force, and other concerned agencies started a search for the others. However, they did not find any of the missing Cuban migrants.
Survivors said they left Cuba on Sunday. On Wednesday evening, their vessel sank.
The Coast Guard had searched for more than 123 hours, covering the area around the size of New Hampshire before ending its operation, according to The Hill report.
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Cuban Migrants in Florida
Cubans are crossing the border in greater numbers on dangerous journeys to the United States, according to a Tampa Bay Times report.
The migrant crossing started to rise last November during Cuba's crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Coast Guard said that more Cubans are taking their chances with the journey this year as compared to last year despite a U.S. policy amendment that no longer allows Cuban migrants to stay in the United States after reaching its shores.
The Coast Guard has reported it stopped 298 people from Cuba at sea as compared to 49 in the fiscal year of 2020.
The recent spike in Cuban migrants journeying their way to the United States can be contributed to the ongoing economic crisis, as well as the lack of legal channels for migration.
William LeoGrande, a professor at American University in Washington and an expert on Latin America, said that things are terribly hard as of now due to food shortage and medicine.
LeoGrande added that the government has very little in the way of foreign currency to import things.
He also noted that on top of the list of Cuban imports are food, medicine, and fuel.
In April, the Coast Guard had repatriated 23 Cuban migrants to their home country, according to a Keys News report.
Chamie said that they have seen an 80 percent increase in migration activity since January.
He added that migrants often take the travel by boat, with most of the time the vessels are dangerously overloaded and ill-equipped for safe transport for any number of people.
Last month, the crew of Coast Guard Cutter Tampa had offloaded around 5, 500 pounds of cocaine worth around $94.6 million.
A law enforcement team had detained three suspects and discovered 87 bales of cocaine on April 9.
WATCH: Families wait for updates of U.S. Coast Guard's search for Cubans at sea - from WPLG Local 10
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