Photo: Rescued passengers with Dominican Navy personnel. Supplied by the Armada de República Dominicana, via Diario Libre (linked below).
Sixty-one people were rescued from an overloaded boat that was sinking off Cabo Cabrón on Monday, October 5, according to a U.S. Coast Guard statement reported by EFE. Dominican Navy crews also took part in the operation off the Samaná peninsula.
The cutter Winslow Griesser spotted the roughly nine-metre boat at about 5:50 a.m., approximately 22 kilometres northwest of Cabo Cabrón. Its crew began taking passengers aboard as the unstable vessel took on water.
A Coast Guard MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter and a Dominican Air Force aircraft provided aerial support. Dominican Navy patrol boats subsequently joined the rescue. The Navy said those rescued were taken to the Samaná dock for identification and interviews.
The operation took place offshore near Cabo Cabrón, along the northern side of the peninsula west of Las Galeras. Authorities warned about the danger of attempting sea crossings in overloaded, makeshift boats.
Sources: Diario Libre / EFE, October 5; Primera Hora / EFE, October 6.