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Person Remains Missing Coast Guard Rescues 28 Off Key West

As of March 21, Coast Guard Station Key West rescue crews were searching for a missing person in the water from a group of migrants, about 6 miles south of Key West.

The rescue crew saved 18 people who were in the water and another 10 from a migrant vessel. Two people were medically evacuated to a higher level of care, the Coast Guard said.

A good Samaritan notified Coast Guard Sector Key West watchstanders of people in the water from a migrant vessel at about 8:40 a.m. on Monday, March 20.

Coast Guard air and surface crews searched throughout the night and were scheduled to continue searching throughout the day Tuesday for the missing person.

“Coast Guard crews will continue to search for this person until all efforts are exhausted,” said Capt. Jason Ingram, commander of Sector Key West. “Taking to the sea in dangerous weather and unseaworthy vessels greatly increases the risk for loss of life. Don’t take to the sea. Use safe and legal means of immigrating to the U.S.”

The weather on scene at the time of the incident was 5-foot seas and 20-knot winds.

The nationality of the people isn’t known at this time.

If anyone has any information regarding this person, please contact Sector Key West watchstanders at 305-292-8727.

— Contributed

HUMOR

As the Florida Keys and other Gulf regions of Florida await the 13 million tons of seaweed (or sargassum — see page 4) to wash ashore, many residents have a mixed range of expectations and emotions.

Will the nutrient-rich blob offer fishermen a bountiful habitat for fish and sea life? Or will it be detrimental to our waters, spurring dangerous toxins and messy shorelines?

Regardless, much of Florida is monitoring the sargassum’s arrival in similar fashion to a hurricane track, which got us thinking, why does the seaweed blob not have an official name? Always here to help, here are our…