6 people from Cuba land in Miami Beach on a wooden boat after 2 weeks at sea, officials say
Six people from Cuba arrived in Miami Beach Friday morning in what federal authorities say is a rustic migrant vessel.
The four men and two women came to shore around 10 a.m. at 53rd Street and Collins Avenue in a small wooden rowboat, said Adam Hoffner, division chief for U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Miami operations. The area, about a mile north of the Fontainebleau hotel, is lined with high-rise condos.
“The migrants reported that they spent nearly two weeks at sea,” Hoffner said in an email. “There were no medical concerns identified at the scene.”
Three other Cubans arrived in the Florida Keys Friday morning. Hoffner said the three men were found around 8 a.m. on Plantation Key in the Upper Florida Keys.
Both landings are part of an ongoing surge in maritime migration to South Florida from Cuba and Haiti. Since Oct. 1, the Coast Guard has stopped 1,451 people from Cuba at sea attempting to come to the United States, said agency spokeswoman Petty Officer Nicole Groll. That’s the highest number in five years.
The Border Patrol said Friday that the Miami Beach incident was the 93rd migrant landing the agency has responded to since the beginning of October.
