Haiti Sailboat Death – The Haitian officials have confirmed the death of 14 persons who drowned to death and more missing after a sailboat they were riding in sank between mainland Haiti and an outlying island on Wednesday afternoon, August 19.
The coordinator of the civil protection office in Haiti’s Northwest Department, Jose Rethone reports that the boat sank around 1.00pm on Wednesday as the passengers returned to the Île de la Tortue from market day in the town of Saint-Louis-du-Nord, which is about one hour trip across the La Tortue channel.
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According to Rethone, nine persons were rescued alive while a lot remained lost. It was not clear how many passengers had paid to board the boat, but its known that the boat often carries dozen of people, says Rethone.
Rethone continues to say that the Haitian Coast Guard did not respond on time for aid and the US Coast Guard were called by his office to help.
Weather was not a factor in the incident because the weather was calm and waves were on a minimal at the time of the incident, says Rethone.
The incident is still under investigation.