Taxi-borne Refugees Set Sail for Florida
A family fleeing from Cuba commandeered a vintage taxi and sailed it 70 miles across the sea to the United States.
A family fleeing from Cuba commandeered a vintage taxi and sailed it 70 miles across the sea to the United States. Coastguards spotted the sky blue 1950s vehicle bobbing across the waves towards them as they patrolled the Florida Straits.
The DIY water-taxi had been fitted with a boat prow and a propeller to help it cut through the rough seas. Hanging out of the windows were up to 13 Cubans, including two children.
The refugees, some of whom are thought to have been among the so-called Truckonauts who attempted the voyage in a converted pick-up in 2003, were given lifejackets and taken ashore by the US coastguard.
"Hopefully this time they won't go back," said Mariana Diaz, a Cuban exile in Miami, who claimed that her nephew, Rafael Diaz Reyes, was one of those aboard the taxi.
Similar attempts to reach Florida in floating vehicles in July 2003 and February 2004 ended in his repatriation.
The DIY water-taxi had been fitted with a boat prow and a propeller to help it cut through the rough seas. Hanging out of the windows were up to 13 Cubans, including two children.
The refugees, some of whom are thought to have been among the so-called Truckonauts who attempted the voyage in a converted pick-up in 2003, were given lifejackets and taken ashore by the US coastguard.
"Hopefully this time they won't go back," said Mariana Diaz, a Cuban exile in Miami, who claimed that her nephew, Rafael Diaz Reyes, was one of those aboard the taxi.
Similar attempts to reach Florida in floating vehicles in July 2003 and February 2004 ended in his repatriation.
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