A sailboat carrying upwards of 200 illegal migrants ran aground in South Florida this week, according to reports.
The shocking incident unfolded on Thursday morning in waters near Boca Chita Key in Miami-Dade County.
A concerned boater notified authorities about the vessel, which was overflowing with more than 150 passengers believed to be from Haiti, Local 10 reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), Miami-Dade Police, Miami-Dade Fire and Rescue, Florida Fish & Wildlife, and Customs and Border Protection all responded to the scene.
“Currently, people are on the vessel safe & not in the water. We are asking mariners to stay clear of the area for safety concerns,” USCG announced at around 11:30 a.m.
“USCG and partner agencies’ crews are carefully transferring people from the overloaded and unsafe sailing vessel and transporting them to Coast Guard cutter crews for future repatriation to their country of origin.”
Four of the boat passengers were reportedly hospitalized.
While the total number of migrants found aboard remains unclear, initial reports indicated it could have been over 200.
More than 5,000 Haitians were interdicted by Coast Guard crews during the first eight months of Fiscal Year 2022, and border agents “responded to 116 migrant landings in Florida with nearly 1600 encounters” during the same period.
Reporting from Infowars.
