National Navy rescues 34 migrants in the Gulf of Urabá

The Navy reported that it rescued 34 migrants of different nationalities near Cape Tiburón, Chocó. According to the entity, the foreigners were on a fiberglass boat that was left adrift in the waters of the Gulf of Urabá.

As explained by the commander of the Urabá Coast Guard Station, Jaime Enrique González, “units of the National Navy, at night, detected a fiberglass boat on the border with Panama, intending to cross the border illegally.” According to foreigners, the pilot fled the scene when he noticed the presence of the authorities and they were adrift.

The uniformed personnel carried out the respective verification and inspection of the vessel and stated that it succeeded in safeguarding the lives of 29 citizens of Bangladesh, three from Venezuela, one from Ecuador and one from India. None of them had the documentation proving their entry and transit into the country.

“The Navy managed to safeguard the lives of these foreigners and took them safely to the district of Capurganá, where, with the support of Migration Colombia, the respective regularization process was continued,” González said in a video shared on the entity's social networks. In turn, he said that the Caribbean naval force will continue to exercise control of the sea in the Gulf of Urabá, “in order to guarantee human life at sea,” he added.

With regard to the motor ship in which they were transported, the Navy carried out proper inspection and immobilization. Subsequently, it was handed over to the competent authorities.

This is the video in which the commander reported the situation to the public:

Navy rescued and evacuated a woman and her newborn daughter in the Gulf of Urabá

Another rescue case occurred on the night of March 8, at the height of the Bocas del Coco sector, on the river Atrato, in the department of Chocó. A boat began to have engine failures in the midst of the heavy rains that usually hit this region of the country.

The Urabá Coast Guard Station responded to the emergency call made by the medical staff of the IPS Golfo Salud, when they were traveling aboard the boat coming from Unguía in Chocó.

The Coast Guard crew, as they approached where the vessel was located, had to launch flares to locate the mouth of the river and detect possible objects that would jeopardize the entry of the Rapid Reaction Unit due to heavy rain and poor visibility in the area.

Once at the scene of the emergency they rescued the mother, her newborn daughter and medical personnel, who were transported to the port of Turbo. An ambulance awaited them there, which quickly transported the woman to the hospital, as she suffered placental retention during the premature delivery of her baby, which was taken to a clinic for neonatal care.

After leaving them safe, the Coast Guard crew returned to the Bocas del Coco sector on the Atrato river to assist the boat and its pilot, and towed them to the pier in Turbo, Antioquia.

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