A vessel carrying nearly 200 Haitian immigrants capsized Tuesday near Turks and Caicos. The U.S. Coast Guard reports that 113 people were rescued and two were found dead. Four of the survivors were injured and had to be airlifted by helicopter to shore. 85 people are still missing from the sunken ship.
According to survivors, the vessel left Haiti with 160 people on board but stopped to pick up more passengers. The group was headed for the Bahamas or the southern coast of the United States in search of work. Haitians often leave Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, and take to the seas in search of work and a better life. Just last week, the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted what they called a “grossly overloaded” 60-foot boat carrying 124 passengers. Those passengers returned safely to Haiti Monday.
