KEY WEST, Fla. (WSVN) — Forty-two Cuban migrants have floated to freedom in the Keys aboard separate boats, Wednesday and Friday.
Wednesday night, 23 Cuban migrants came ashore on Smathers Beach in Key West, according to the Key West Police Department. On board the homemade boat were 21 men and two women.
U.S. Border Patrol agents processed the migrants and released them to local relatives. A 7News viewer sent photos of their makeshift boat just moments after they touched U.S. soil.
Two days later, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, around 5 a.m., Sheriff’s dispatchers received a report from Harry Harris Park in Tavernier of a group of 12 male, Cuban migrants. When deputies arrived, they encountered the men in good condition, although slightly dehydrated. These migrants landed in a 15-foot long boat.
A few hours later, at 11 a.m., the dispatchers received another call of a group of Cuban migrants who had landed on a small island offshore Geiger Key. In this case, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission responded and transported a deputy to the island. The migrants were in good condition and were held until U.S. Customs and Border Control took custody of them.