Four lifeless Cuban rafters and four others in a serious state of dehydration were discovered aboard a boat adrift on the northern coasts of Mexico.
According to the local press, the boat was sighted by local fishermen when it was off the coast of Carbonera beach, belonging to the municipality of San Fernando, in the state of Tamaulipas.
The statements of the survivors affirm that the boat would have been left adrift at sea for 34 days after leaving northern Cuba.
The media indicate that the rafters were dragged by sea currents in their attempt to cross the Strait of Florida towards the United States, so they ended up traveling the entire Gulf of Mexico.
The surviving Cubans were identified as Mario Sergio Márquez Ventura, 30 years old, Yuresqui Romero Hernández, 33, Diosan, 26, and Rogelio, 35 years old. These castaways ended up being transferred to the Punta de Piedra fishing camp, where they received first aid before being hospitalized in the city.
The Cubans traveled aboard an improvised boat made of sheets of metal and wood. According to the survivors, they lost control of the ship after encountering strong storms, which generated waves up to six meters high.
At the moment, the identity of the deceased rafters is unknown. Some media contradict each other, pointing out that the bodies were on board the ship and others that the rafters had fallen into the sea after a storm.
The economic crisis in Cuba, which is the most serious it has faced in its history, drives more and more people to try to reach abroad in search of better opportunities, even if that means risking their lives in the open sea.
Despite all the measures taken by the United States government to stop the march of illegal migrants, boats with Cuban rafters continue to arrive on its shores, although others with less luck must be rescued by sailors who come across them.
Some of the most famous cases are those of rafters who end up being rescued by luxury cruise shipswho spot their boats on the high seas and come to provide help.
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