MIAMI — Editors note: The video above is from October 2021
The U.S. Coast Guard and local Miami-Dade law enforcement agencies responded Thursday morning to a grounded sailing vessel holding between 150-200 people in Biscayne Bay, according to tweets from USCGSoutheast.
CBS News reported that a boater spotted the sailboat around 9:15 a.m. potentially carrying a large number of Haitian migrants.
"These ventures are inherently dangerous. These vessels aren't necessarily seaworthy. They're grossly overloaded. They don't have proper safety gear. It's not like people are planning for the weather when they come to make these voyages to the US," said Ryan Estrada, a spokesperson for the US Coast Guard told CBS News.
A perimeter was set up around the boat and people aboard were given food, water and an evaluation, CBS news explained. At least two women, a man, and a child were reportedly taken to a nearby hospital.
The Miami Herald reported that by the end of the afternoon the Coast Guard began loading people onto cutter boats to be sent back to their "country of origin," which is believed to be Haiti because of similar boats Haitian migrants have used before.
The massive migration is the largest exodus from Haiti in two decades, the Herald explained.
Many of these migration efforts are being attributed to the rising violence in Haiti.
"Haiti is a country at war. It's on lock. People are suffering. It's a burning hell," said Marlene Bastien, a Haitian activist.
She told the outlet that gangs are wreaking havoc and state-sponsored violence has become a major concern.
"Haiti has been going through one of the worst crises in history where thousands and thousands are being forced out of their homes," Bastien said.
CBS News reported that around 6,114 migrants were stopped by the Coast Guard from October 2021 to late June. Reportedly, that's more than four times the number of Haitians stopped in 2021 and more than 14 times the amount from 2020.
Last month, 27 Haitians were rescued, and three suspected smugglers were detained, after the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted an illegal voyage in Mona Passage between June 6 and June 8.
In May, a boat with reportedly with 842 migrants trying to reach the U.S. landed in Cuba instead.
Miami-Dade County Commissioner Jean Monestime, a Haitian-American, released a statement following the interception Thursday:
“It is well known that the political, health, and safety situations in Haiti are dire,” Monestime said. “Many of those Haitian nationals arriving in the USA are certainly asylum seekers fleeing political turmoil. It is my hope that President Biden, his Administration and our legal system treat these migrants with humanity.”