Nine people are missing after a vessel carrying 22 from Cuba capsized in the waters off Key West, officials said.
Thirteen of them were rescued on Tuesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday in a statement. The names and conditions of the survivors were not released, but officials said the 13 included nine males and four females. Seven males and two females are among the missing.
The Coast Guard first learned about the emergency from a Western Carmen motor vessel that spotted four people in the waters about 26 miles southeast of Key West around 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to officials. Crews responded and rescued 10 people before deploying helicopters, airplanes and ships to search for the others who were missing. Three more people were found during that search. A good Samaritan assisted in the rescue effots, according to the Coast Guard.
Photos showed some of the survivors clinging to orange floating devices as heavy downpours hit the water.
#UPDATE 3 more survivors were rescued. Photos of the scene from @USCG Cutter Thetis. The search for more survivors continue as we evaluate the health and provide medical attention for those rescued. pic.twitter.com/9eD0VeioGI
— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) July 6, 2021
Crew members “interviewed the survivors and reported they left from Cuba and their vessel capsized with 22 people aboard at approximately 8 p.m. on Monday,” the Coast Guard said in the statement.
Officials are continuing the search for the missing people.
No other details were immediately available.
Wilson Wong is a breaking news reporter with NBC News.
