Florida authorities were preparing for Hurricane Milton to make landfall in the Sunshine State on Wednesday night when they encountered a boat full of illegal immigrants arriving in the Sunshine State.
The Border Patrol said its officers and law enforcement partners responded to migrants who landed in Boynton Beach Wednesday night.
There were 11 migrants on board the boat. six from Haiti, two from Guyana, one from the Dominican Republic and two from the Bahamas.
Federal authorities stop waves of illegal Haitian immigrants from landing in red state by boat
This view shows a boat arriving with 11 migrants on Wednesday night. (U.S. Border Patrol)
Miami Interim Chief Patrol Agent Andrew Scharnweber pointed out the dangers of such a voyage in an X post, especially with a historic hurricane looming.
“Illegal maritime migration voyages are extremely dangerous, especially in adverse weather conditions,” he said.
Florida regularly deals with ships full of migrants trying to reach the United States, especially from Haiti. In June, the Coast Guard intercepted 305 migrants as part of an operation to intercept nearly 12,000 migrants in fiscal year 2023.
Drone image shows flooded roads from Hurricane Milton in Siesta Key, Florida on October 10, 2024. (Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP via Getty Images)
florida governor ron DeSantis In March, the government announced it would send soldiers, officials, planes and boats to “protect” the state from ships carrying illegal immigrants.
“Given the situation in Haiti, I am directing the Office of Emergency Management, the Florida National Guard, and state law enforcement agencies to deploy more than 250 military personnel and more than a dozen aircraft and vessels to the south coast of Florida to protect our state. I gave them instructions to deploy,'” he said.
Live blog: Hurricane Milton passes through Florida, leaving millions with deadly power outages
The Department of Homeland Security warned earlier this year that those entering the country illegally would be deported.
“The policy of the United States is to repatriate noncitizens who do not fear persecution or torture and who have no legal basis to enter the United States. Persons intercepted at sea are subject to immediate repatriation in accordance with long-standing U.S. policies and procedures. subject,” the spokesperson said. told Fox News Digital In March. “The United States will return or repatriate migrants intercepted at sea to the Bahamas, Cuba, Dominican Republic, and Haiti.”
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Immigration from Haiti has become a hotly debated political issue, with former President Trump pointing out that large numbers of immigrants are having a negative impact on small towns across the country.
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Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key, Florida, late Wednesday night as a Category 3 storm with winds of 190 mph. The storm devastated Florida's coast, leaving more than 3 million people without power by Thursday morning.
Some areas of Florida have received more than 10 inches of rain so far, and many areas could see an additional 8 to 12 inches of rain.
