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Sixteen people stranded at sea were rescued by a cruise ship on the final day of its seven-day journey. The Carnival Mardi Gras was heading back to Port Canaveral, Florida, on Friday (June 3) when crew members spotted the tiny vessel off the coast of Cuba just after 8 a.m.
The small boat was in distress due to the rough seas caused by a tropical depression. The crew of the Mardi Gras assisted the group of Cuban migrants and brought them on board for their safety.
Carnival said that the ship will return to port as scheduled on Saturday and that the Coast Guard and appropriate authorities have been notified.
According to the Orlando Sentinal, the number of Cuban migrants being rescued at sea has been climbing in recent years. During the 2021 fiscal year, the U.S. Coast Guard picked up 838 migrants off the coast of Cuba. Since October 1, 2021, the Coast Guard has rescued 2,146 Cubans, the most since 2016, when nearly 5,400 Cubans were rescued.