Above: the Haitian migrants on a Bahamian ship (BIS Photo)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

A group of migrants from Haiti has been apprehended in Abaco in the Bahamas, the Bahamian government announced Wednesday.

Bahamian immigration officials apprehended 16 migrants from Haiti from a body of water called “Hole in the Wall” on Wednesday morning, ultimately apprehending 30 migrants claiming to have traveled to Abaco on a wooden sloop from Port de Paix.

The Haitian migrants were reportedly examined by Bahamian medical officials and found in what the government called “good condition.”

They were taken into custody at the Marsh Harbour immigration office, where they are currently being documented and processed for travel to New Providence and eventual repatriation.

“Officers will remain vigilant and will continue to comb the area for additional illegal migrants,” Immigration Director Jack Thompson said.

After the immigration operation, officials found one woman who had died, and a total of 81 Haitian migrants whom they took into custody, including 56 men, 18 women and seven children.

Four men of that group were taken to Princess Margaret Hospital to be treated for severe dehydration. One remains in intensive care.

“The department is making all efforts for a timely and orderly repatriation,” Thompson said.