Dozens feared dead in latest Dominican boatpeople mishap

Miches, Dominican Republic.- A boat with more than 70 undocumented people sank Wednesday night near the coastal village La Vacama, 44 kilometers east of Miches, with at least 38 rescued, eight severely dehydrated. Among the rescued figure three Haitians.

The boatpeople, dozens of which are feared dead, tried to reach Puerto Rico, said the Navy in a statement, but their 24 foot, yola type boat hit reefs near the coast and sank.

The Navy said 38 people were rescued, some of them being held in the military post at La Vacama, from where two women it didn’t identify were taken to a clinic in Nisibón.

The latest in a long history of boatpeople tragedies comes just one month after 56 undocumented travelers drowned near Samana Bay, also trying to reach Puerto Rico.