The Nation : Further Cuban Refugee Surge Expected

The latest surge of Cuban refugees making the perilous sea journey to Florida shows no signs of abating as economic and political problems get worse on the island, an immigration official said. Four Cubans picked up Monday by a freighter off the Florida Keys brought to 117 the number of Cuban refugees found at sea since January, more than the total for the past two years. “I would say they have reached a point of total disillusionment in Cuba,� said Perry Rivkind, district director of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service in Miami. The Coast Guard in Miami said 59 Cubans were found at sea last year and 44 were picked up in 1987. Rivkind said only one Cuban was found at sea in 1985. Many of the Cubans make the journey across the Florida Straits in small boats or makeshift vessels, such as inner tubes or rafts. Rivkind said some are washed overboard in rough seas or die of dehydration or hunger.