Key points
- The boat was carrying about 40 people
- The fateful vessel was headed for Puerto Rico
- A child was among the survivors
ISLAMABAD: Four migrants died and about 20 were missing after their boat capsized off the coast of the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean, authorities said Friday.
According to the Dominican civil defence authority, seventeen migrants were rescued from the boat, which was carrying about 40 people and headed for Puerto Rico — a US territory located roughly 130 kilometres from the Dominican Republic’s eastern coast.
The Caribbean nation’s navy said it had rescued 10 Dominicans and seven Haitians. A child was among the survivors.
According to Al Arabiya English, so-called “yola” migrant boats, such as the one that ran into trouble, are constructed from wood or fiberglass and do not comply with safety regulations, according to authorities.
The Dominican Republic shares the island of Hispaniola with crisis-torn Haiti.
Growing phenomenon
Illegal migration from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico has been a growing phenomenon in the last decade, according to AFP.
According to the Dominican Navy, the survivors include ten Dominicans and seven Haitian nationals, among them a child.
Passengers reportedly paid smugglers up to $7,000 each for the dangerous journey in hopes of escaping poverty and seeking better living conditions.
Search operations for the missing are ongoing. The cause of the sinking has not yet been determined. Authorities described the incident as part of the wider, ongoing migration crisis affecting the Caribbean region.
