The U.S. Coast Guard repatriated 14 Cubans who had been intercepted on a makeshift vessel about 13 miles west of Elbow Cay, while a fifteenth person had to be evacuated for medical attention.
The repatriation was handled by the crew of the Coast Guard cutter William Flores, the Coast Guard reported this Thursday.
The group was located on September 3 about 13 miles west of Elbow Cay, Bahamas, after an aircraft from the Air and Marine Operations of the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) detected the vessel and alerted the Key West Sector.
The Coast Guard dispatched the patrol boat Pablo Valent and a boat from the Marathon Station. The crews boarded the 15 Cubans and transported them for processing.
One of those individuals was subsequently evacuated to shore for higher-level medical care, while the other 14 were transferred to the William Flores and returned to Cuba.
The Coast Guard did not provide details about the identity or health status of the evacuated person.
Lieutenant Commander Jon Girot, liaison officer of the Coast Guard and attaché of the Department of Homeland Security at the United States Embassy in Havana, warned about the dangers of attempting to reach the country by sea.
"Cubans should not risk their lives trying to enter the United States illegally by sea," he stated.
Girot also stated that U.S. authorities maintain a strong presence in the region by coordinating various agencies to detect vessels attempting these crossings.
The operation is part of Operation Vigilant Sentry, the U.S. interagency initiative that maintains air, land, and maritime resources deployed in the Florida Strait, the Windward Passage, the Mona Passage, and the Caribbean to curb irregular maritime migration.
U.S. authorities reiterated that individuals intercepted at sea are processed for repatriation to their country of origin or departure and warned that attempting to reach the U.S. through these means can have immigration consequences.
In June, the Coast Guard repatriated another 27 Cubans who had been rescued in the Yucatán Channel after the vessel they were traveling on began to sink.
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