In recent hours, images have surfaced confirming the rescue of a group of Cuban migrants who had been adrift in the Gulf of Mexico for nine days.
The rescue was carried out by the Mexican Navy (SEMAR) near the shores of Progreso, in the waters of Yucatán.
The operation has brought an end to over a week of anguish for many families, although it has left an uncertainty regarding the number of people on board at the time of the rescue, as local media report 16 individuals rescued, not 19 as initially stated.
One of the most widely circulated photos shows a rescuer in an orange life jacket and a red helmet —with the inscription "MARINA" visible on the uniform— approaching an overloaded white boat with a makeshift blue tarp serving as a sail.
Mexican media have been spreading the first images of the operation, both of the rescue moment at sea and of the migrants' arrival on land.
Other images document the arrival of the rescued individuals at the dock, assisted by naval personnel.
Just like his transfer in a vehicle from the Secretary of the Interior to the facilities of the Ninth Naval Zone.
The vessel departed on August 11 from the province of Pinar del Río, in western Cuba, and contact with its occupants was lost on that same day.
The alert was issued by the Port Captaincy of Yucalpetén upon receiving a report of a white boat with people on board.
The personnel of the Naval Search and Rescue Station (ENSAR) in Yucalpetén deployed a Defender type fast boat and located the vessel approximately 10 nautical miles from Chicxulub Puerto, northeast of Progreso.
After locating the maritime unit, the Navy personnel proceeded to rescue 12 adults and four minors, who were brought to safety and underwent a medical assessment to determine their health conditions.
The figure that doesn't add up: 16 or 19 people?
The most delicate point of the rescue so far is the discrepancy in the figures. The official report from SEMAR confirmed the rescue of 16 individuals: 12 adults and four minors, all in stable condition and without the need for emergency hospital care, according to several local Mexican media sources in recent hours.
Euronews, the leading international news channel in Europe, also reported the same number: 12 adults and four minors.
However, previous reports from family members and media indicated that 19 Cubans were traveling on the vessel: 12 adults and seven minors.
"The rescue remains shrouded in uncertainty. While the latest report from the Navy accounts for 16 individuals found—12 adults and four children—reports released during the search indicated that there were 19 Cubans on board the vessel," it warns Punctual Diary.
The cited source adds that "up until the last available report, the discrepancy of three individuals between the initial figure and the number of people rescued had not been publicly clarified. For this reason, both figures must remain separate, and it cannot be assumed that the originally reported 19 individuals were recovered."
Finally, the news portal concludes that "the difference between the 19 occupants initially reported and the 16 rescued remains the main point that needs clarification."
Until the closure of this note, the mystery regarding the discrepancy in figures remains.
Families in suspense for nine days
Among the passengers on the vessel were the twins Leosdel and Leosniel, only two years old, along with their mother Yusimy Garrobo Leiva, who is 35 years old.
His father, Leobel, had been working in construction in Mexico for almost a year and was looking forward to reuniting with his family there. Before the rescue, he told Univisión that the boat had mechanical failures, ran out of fuel more than halfway through the journey, and that the skipper attempted to continue the trip under sail.
Another family member, Yunaidy Martínez Ramírez, a resident of Cancun, had her husband and three young children among the missing.
"In the boat is my whole family. It's a vessel that was in good condition, but one engine broke down and then they ran out of gas halfway through," he told Martí Noticias.
After the rescue was confirmed, Leobel summarized the relief of the families in a few words: “I am happy. All I want is to see my children.”
The 16 rescued individuals are now under the responsibility of the National Institute of Migration (INM) to determine their immigration status.
The incident occurred just days after another tragedy: on August 14, two young men drowned in Pinar del Río —Leodannis Sánchez, 17, and Osmaikel, 19— after the sinking of another vessel in the municipality of Sandino that was attempting to reach Cancún.
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