• Submitted by: manso
• Politics and Government
• 05 / 16 / 2011

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Forty-six make it onto shore in past two weeks, 59 'repatriated' BY ADAM LINHARDT Citizen Staff.keysnews.com. The onset of summer -- with warmer and calmer seas -- appears to be fueling an increase in the flow of migrants from the Florida Keys' neighbor to the south, Cuba.

Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers intercepted 59 Cubans in nine different cases in Keys waters between April 28 and May 1. All migrants are given food, water and medical attention when transferred to Coast Guard cutters. Those stopped at sea are taken back to their island nation under the U.S. ‘wet foot, dry foot’ policy. So far this year, 430 have made it to U.S. shores, meaning they can stay.

Those 59 migrants were "repatriated" this week, but many of their compatriots fared better under the U.S. government's "wet foot, dry foot" policy. There were 15 landings in Monroe County during the same time period, with 46 migrants making it to shore, according to Customs and Border Protection.

There have been 48 landings in all of South Florida this year already -- 28 of those in Monroe County -- with 430 migrants in total from all the landings, said Customs Public Affairs Officer Elee Erice.

Of the 430 total, 392 were Cubans and 10 were Haitian, Erice said.

"We have seen a spike," said Capt. Pat DeQuattro, who commands Coast Guard installations in the Keys. "When the winds lay down and the seas respond accordingly, we'll often see a surge in numbers. This is a classic example."

Coast Guard crews made five stops on April 28 alone. Following is a Coast Guard breakdown of vessels that were stopped at sea April 28 through May 1:

• Personnel from a cruise ship saw a "rustic" vessel with nine Cubans aboard May 1 north of Havana. They were transferred to the Coast Guard cutter Mohawk.

• The Coast Guard cutter Pea Island stopped two Cubans April 30 on a vessel south of Key West.

• A boater spotted a boat with five Cubans on it April 30 south of Islamorada. A Coast Guard crew from Islamorada stopped that vessel.

• The cutter Pea Island crew stopped a boat with 21 Cubans aboard April 30 south of Islamorada.

The following stops all were made on April 28:

• Four Cubans aboard a vessel were stopped south of Key West.

• A Coast Guard Islamorada crew stopped a "crude" boat with five Cubans aboard southeast of Islamorada.

• The Mohawk crew stopped five Cubans aboard another crude vessel south of Islamorada.

• Two Cubans on a boat were stopped south of Key West.

• The Mohawk stopped a vessel with six Cubans aboard south of Marathon.

Since Oct. 1, 2010, a total of 365 Cubans have been stopped by the Coast Guard, including 125 in April alone, according to a Coast Guard press release.

Erice also attributed the recent increase in migrants in part to the warmer waters and calmer seas.

"We typically see higher numbers in the summer months," Erice said, adding that the numbers should steadily rise in the coming weeks.

The Mohawk, Kodiak Island and Pea Island are based at the Key West Coast Guard station.

Source: http://keysnews.com/node/31896