MIAMI – Coast Guard Cutter Valiant's crew repatriated 169 people to Haiti, Wednesday, following an interdiction south of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
A Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 aircrew forward deployed in support of Operation Bahamas, Turks and Caicos notified Coast Guard District Seven watchstanders of an overloaded makeshift vessel taking on water at approximately 5 p.m., Saturday. District Seven watchstanders diverted the crew of Coast Guard Cutter Margaret Norvell to interdict the vessel.
“The development of tropical cyclones in the north Atlantic poses a significant risk to unlawful maritime migration,” said Lt. Peter Hutchison, a Coast Guard Seventh District enforcement officer. "Makeshift vessels are unseaworthy and incapable of handling the rough seas and winds brought by inclement weather.”
Anyone attempting unlawful maritime migration will be rescued and repatriated to their country of origin or departure.
Once aboard a Coast Guard cutter, migrants are processed to determine their identity and are provided food, water, shelter, and basic medical attention before repatriation to their country of origin or return to the country from which they departed.
The Coast Guard, along with its Homeland Security Task Force – Southeast partners, maintains a continual presence with air, land, and sea assets in the Florida Straits, the Windward Passage, the Mona Passage, and the Caribbean Sea in support of Operation Vigilant Sentry. The HSTF-SE combined, multi-layered approach is designed to protect the safety of life at sea while preventing unlawful maritime entry to the United States and its territories.
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