The Coast Guard is searching an area the size of Rhode Island for any signs of 38 people believed to have been in a boat that capsized off the coast of Florida after one survived and at least one other died.
A single survivor was found about 8 a.m. Tuesday clinging to an overturned 25-foot boat about 45 miles east of the Fort Pierce Inlet, north of Miami.
The unidentified person was taken to a hospital to be treated for dehydration and sun exposure, Coast Guard officials said in a statement.
The survivor told Coast Guard officials that he had been part of a group of 40 people that left Bimini in the Bahamas on Saturday. The boat encountered severe weather, including winds up to 20 mph and waves approaching 10 feet, officials said.
The Coast Guard issued a small craft advisory through the weekend because of the severe weather between Florida and the Bahamas.
The boat capsized early Sunday. The man who was rescued told rescuers no one was wearing life jackets.
Local officials said the boat may have been part of a human smuggling operation, The Associated Press reported.
The Coast Guard has searched more than 1,300 square miles for any signs of survivors. At least three Coast Guard cutters and a number of military helicopters are taking part in the effort, officials said.
The passage is believed to be a route for human smuggling into the United States. As recently as Jan. 21, the Coast Guard has joined the Royal Bahamas Defense Force in a joint search-and-rescue effort that resulted in the retrieval of 31 suspected migrants from Haiti from a capsized boat southwest of Bimini.
Their boat had capsized after taking on water due to severe weather, Bahamian officials said.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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