An operation to smuggle Haitian migrants into the United States came to a tragic end Monday in the Bahamas after the migrants’ boat capsized and sank in rough water. Out of the 28 people on board, only four made it to the shore of Abaco Island. The survivors notified local police of the accident. Bahamian authorities asked the U.S. Coast Guard to assist in the search and rescue mission.
Eleven bodies were recovered from the water. Thirteen people remained missing Tuesday. Bahamian authorities continued searching the water by boat while Coast Guard aircraft searched from the air. Chris Lloyd, an official with the Bahamas Air Sea Rescue Association, said the missing are likely dead.
"I don't know that it is a search any more rather than a recovery," Lloyd. "Those who were going to survive, survived I'm afraid."
Capt. Brendan McPherson of the U.S. Coast Guard urged migrants to seek legal means of entering the U.S. "As we continue our efforts to locate any survivors, the Coast Guard urges family members everywhere to plead with loved ones overseas who might wish to immigrate to the U.S. to only do so through safe and lawful means," he said.
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