The U.S. Border Patrol said Wednesday that 23 people were missing off the coast of Florida after a Cuban migrant boat sank in Hurricane Ian.
Border Patrol agents responded to a landing of migrants in Stock Island, Florida, officials said on Twitter, adding that the US Coast Guard had launched a search operation for the 23 missing people.
Four Cuban migrants swam to shore after their ship sank due to bad weather, chief patrol officer Walter Slosar said. Local media said all four had been hospitalized.
On Tuesday, the storm hit Cuba, knocking out the power grid for 11 million people and ravaging the western end of the island with high winds and flooding. Early Wednesday, the state power provider said it had started restoring power to the east of the island.
Ian’s beating of Cuba left at least two people dead, with both deaths occurring in the hard-hit western province of Pinar del Rio. A woman died after a wall collapsed on her and a man died after his roof fell on him, state media said.
The hurricane hit Cuba at a time of severe economic crisis. Power outages and long-lasting shortages of food, medicine and fuel were likely to complicate efforts to recover from Ian.
On Tuesday, seven migrants from Cuba were taken into custody after reaching shore in Pompano Beach, Florida, US authorities said.
“Do not risk your life attempting this sea voyage. Storm surges and king tide can create dangerous sea conditions even after a storm has passed,” officials said on Twitter on Tuesday during the announcement. of these detentions. Spring tides are exceptionally high and can cause tidal flooding.
On Wednesday, the hurricane began battering Florida’s Gulf Coast with strong winds and torrential rain.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Bill Berkrot)