4 Killed, 26 Missing as Refugee Boat Sinks
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Four people died and 26 were missing and presumed dead after a crowded boat smuggling immigrants to Puerto Rico burned and sank in the Caribbean Sea, a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman said.
The Coast Guard was called Thursday evening to assist the burning 38-foot wooden boat reportedly carrying 117 people about two miles off the coast of the Dominican Republic. Rescuers picked up four bodies and a total of 87 survivors. The cause of the fire was not known.
There is a lucrative trade in the Dominican Republic involving smuggling immigrants who hope to reach Puerto Rico and eventually the continental United States.
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