KEY WEST, Fla. — Two people died and 10 are missing after a boat in which they were passengers overturned off the coast of Key West on Thursday afternoon, authorities said.
Update 11:42 p.m. EDT May 27: Two of the people who died were from Cuba and were attempting to migrate to the United States, the Miami Herald reported.
A Coast Guard cutter on patrol spotted eight people from the capsized vessel in the water and rescued them about 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon, the agency said in a news release. A Coast Guard patrol boat crew recovered the two bodies, according to the Herald.
Coast Guard spokesperson Petty Officer Jose Hernandez told reporters that he did not know the type of vessel that capsized.
“Since it capsized, we did not have any visuals on the boat,” Hernandez said.
Update 10:16 p.m. EDT May 27: Officials with the U.S. Coast Guard said a search for survivors will continue off the Florida Keys, WPLG reported. Survivors told the television station that the boat left Puerto de Mariel in Cuba on Sunday. The boat capsized on Wednesday evening about 18 miles southwest of Key West, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
Senior Chief Seth Haynes, the Coast Guard’s Key West command center supervisor, asked the public to help the survivors if they find them.
“Our responders are focused on the search for survivors,” Haynes told WPLG. “We will continue to search through the night.”
Original report: The U.S. Coast Guard is still searching for the missing people, spokesperson Petty Officer Jose Hernandez told the Miami Herald.
The boat was located about 16 miles south of Key West, the newspaper reported.
Two Coast Guard cutters and other units from Coast Guard Sector Key West are involved in the search and rescue operation, Hernandez told the Herald.
Eight people were rescued from the vessel by the Coast Guard, the newspaper reported.
The search is ongoing, Coast Guard officials said.