52 migrants from Cuba, Republic of Georgia tried to reach South Florida in the past day

Immigration authorities responded to several migrant landings and encounters in South Florida over the last 24 hours, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol confirmed on the Friday before Christmas.

The landings involved 47 migrants from Cuba and five migrants from the Republic of Georgia. The Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Branch intercepted the Georgian migrants at sea, according to Miami Sector Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar’s Twitter account. Authorities spotted them on a “Sea-Doo jet boat” that had left from the Bahamas.

The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office received several calls about the landings, according to its service calls log. Callers reported one arrival at about 3:25 a.m. in Long Key, which was referred to another agency.

Between Wednesday and Thursday, Customs and Border Protection reported the arrival of 175 Cuban migrants in the Florida Keys and Hollywood Beach. This week, the U.S. Coast Guard also searched for nine Cubans whose boat capsized near Palm Beach County. After searching nearly 2,500 miles of ocean, the agency called off the search Wednesday. That same day, another boat carrying 21 migrants also overturned close to the Middle Keys, leading to the at-sea disappearance of two passengers.

The Florida Keys has become a hotspot for migrant landings as more Cubans and Haitians take to the sea to flee deteriorating sociopolitical and economic conditions back home.

Chief Slosar said in his Thursday tweet that Border Patrol detained and processed the Georgian nationals for removal proceedings. Meanwhile, it was immediately unclear what happened to the 47 Cuban nationals. Typically, if migrants make landfall and Border Patrol intercepts them, they are processed for immigration proceedings.

This story was originally published December 23, 2022 at 3:19 PM.