From our Seemingly Miraculous Rescues Bureau
Eight men left Cuba in a flimsy raft. Two of them drowned,. Six were found adrift near the Mexican coast. How those six survived for a month is a story that is yet to be told. According to their rescuers, the men were all malnourished and dehydrated.
This is but one of thousands of similar stories that are now part of Cuban history. How tragic is that? Given the unpredictable way in which countries acquire reputations in history, it is highly probable that in the future Cuba will be known worldwide as the awful country from which thousands fled in rafts and rickety boats continuously decade after decade, for God only knows how long….
Hell, maybe a century or two from now, Cubans will still be fleeing and drowning. It’s possible.
Loosely translated from Periodico Cubano
Six Cuban rafters were rescued this Tuesday by fishermen from the community of San Felipe, on the north coast of the state of Yucatan, in Mexico, after spending about a month lost on the high seas.
“During their journey two people were lost. Probably because of the strong waves they drowned and the sea ‘devoured’ them,” an anonymous source told the independent media outlet 14ymedio.
The Cubans, found 24 nautical miles from the town, are Orlando Pérez Salas (34 years old), Pedro Enrique Torne Martínez (33), Lázaro Yoandry Palomino Malpica (27), Michael González López (22), Dayana Suárez Plana (20) and Francisco Garcia Hernandez (20).
According to the source, the rafters “left Cuba on March 15 and wanted to get to Florida because they can no longer live on the island.” Eight people boarded the boat, but only six of them made it through; the disappeared were named as “García y Argáez”.
“The waves and the wind changed the route of the raft driven by an old motor… They are lucky: if they had not run into the fishermen, we do not know if they would have made landfall,” he added.
The Cubans, residing in the province of Camagüey, were approaching 30 days adrift and were already without water and food, so if they had not been rescued, it is likely they would not have survived.
The authorities received the castaways in the port of San Felipe and then they were transferred to a health center by elements of Public Security and the Municipal Police.
Continue reading HERE in Spanish