The Border Crisis Continues

On Saturday, 25 March 2023, Two Cuban migrants utilized a motorized hang glider to make the ninety-some-mile crossing from the communist-controlled island to Key West, Florida.

The Sunshine State’s Monroe County Sheriff's Office said the duo landed safely at Key West International Airport at approximately 10:30 EDT and were turned immediately over to the U.S. Border Patrol. Monroe County spans the southwestern tip of the Florida peninsula and encompasses the islands of Key largo, Islamorada, Marathon, Big Pine Key, and Key West.

Border Patrol officials in South Florida have yet to comment officially on the matter.

Key West International Airport director Richard Strickland stated: “There were no interruptions in service and operations continue as normal.”

Florida has experienced an influx of migrants from Cuba in the past months, many making treacherous journeys by sea. In January 2023, the U.S. Coast Guard returned 273 migrants attempting to enter Florida to Cuba. In September 2022, the Coast Guard intercepted more Cuban migrants than it had since the 1990s.

While Cubans have migrated to the United States for decades, immigration officials have linked the recent and dramatic increase in incoming Cuban migrants to the unrest, persecution, and shortages of basic goods the Caribbean island nation is currently suffering. Such upheavals are common in communist nations and have afflicted Cuba since the country fell to communist insurgents in 1959.

FMI: www.ice.gov