The Coast Guard found only three survivors

March 7, 1999
Web posted at: 12:29 p.m. EST (1729 GMT)

MIAMI (CNN) -- The U.S. Coast Guard on Sunday called off the search for more than 30 Haitians lost off Florida's Atlantic coast after two boats carrying them sank on Saturday.

At least 33 of possibly 36 passengers are presumed dead, the Coast Guard said. Authorities said the actual number of passengers aboard the two vessels was not known because information survivors gave to the Coast Guard was "sketchy."

U.S. officials believe the Haitians were planning to try to enter the United States illegally.

"Investigators believe with the number of people on board the boats, the time of night they were coming into U.S. waters, they are pretty certain this was a smuggling operation," Coast Guard Petty Officer Jeff Hall told CNN.

Rescuers found three survivors Saturday. They were taken to a Florida hospital for treatment and their condition is unknown.

The Coast Guard also spotted four bodies from the sinkings, but were only able to recover two of them.

The waters were calm when the boats went down Saturday morning, but the boats encountered trouble due to their heavy loads, the Coast Guard said.

"One boat needed help, we think, so the other one went over to help it," Hall said. "But with 18 people on each boat, both were way overloaded and were overrun by waves over the sides."

One boat was 17 feet (5 meters) long and the other one was 20 feet (6 meters), Coast Guard officials said.

The survivors are in the custody of U.S. Border Patrol officials. Haitians are usually repatriated if found in U.S. waters, but Coast Guard officials say the Border Patrol makes its decisions on a case-by-case basis.

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