Immigrants
7 rafters at sea rescued by Oasis of the Seas cruise ship
By Amrita Jayakumar
ajayakumar@MiamiHerald.co
Cruise ships now have another attraction to offer tourists: dramatic
rescues at sea.
Seven rafters were rescued by the cruise ship Oasis of the Seas Friday
afternoon, as it made its way back to Port Everglades.
This is the second cruise ship to conduct a rescue in the last two
months. Another Royal Caribbean ship Allure of the Seas rescued nine
Cuban rafters in May.
The group rescued Friday consisted of six men and one woman, said Royal
Caribbean International in a statement.
Passengers spotted a tiny blue raft in the ocean around 3 p.m. Friday
and the captain turned around the 220,000-ton ship to rescue the
rafters, who were taken aboard and given food, water and medical
treatment, according to the statement from Cynthia Martinez, cruise line
spokesperson.
The ship notified the U.S. Coast Guard and the seven rafters were later
transferred to their custody.
Royal Caribbean described the rafters as Cubans, but the Coast Guard
said the nationality of the group could not be confirmed because of an
ongoing government investigation, according to Petty Officer Sabrina
Elgammal.
The rafters appeared to be bailing out water and praying, said Christi
Nasser, a passenger from Tennessee who spotted them and snapped
pictures. Her photos showed the rafters looking healthy and well
dressed, which may indicate that they could have been dropped off by
another vessel.
It is unclear where the rafters are now.
If they were Cubans, their fate would be determined by the U.S.-Cuba
Immigration Accord, more commonly known as the "wet-foot, dry-foot"
policy, which says Cubans who reach American shores are allowed to stay
here while those found at sea are sent back to Cuba or a third country.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/07/01/2296039/7-rafters-at-sea-rescued-by-oasis.html
No comments:
Post a Comment