Three Cuban migrants swam over a kilometer and a half to the US shore after jumping from their boat that was intercepted off Plantation Key in Florida, a US Coast Guard spokesman said today.
Under legislation known as "wet feet, dry feet" Cubans intercepted at sea are sent back home while those who make it to land are generally allowed to remain in the United States.
Of the eight Cubans who were aboard an 3.6-metre aluminium boat intercepted off Plantation Key yesterday, five were "rescued" and were interviewed after being given food, and medical attention, said spokesman Mr Ryan Doss.
Five Cubans jumped into the ocean when the Coast Guard intercepted the boat but only three of them made it to shore, he said, adding that two of them used fins and snorkels.
Last year 2,400 Cubans reached US soil, many of them landing in flimsy rafts and boats in the Florida Keys, about 160 kilometers from the Caribbean island.
AFP
