THE NATION - News from May 14, 2009

A boat overloaded with around 30 people, possibly Haitians being smuggled into the U.S. from their impoverished country, sank off the coast, dropping the occupants into the sea. The Coast Guard rescued 16 and was searching for others but said at least nine had died, including one child. The search was expected to last through the night.

“The boat was obviously overloaded,” Coast Guard Capt. James Fitton said. “It’s a tragedy that someone would be so callous with human life.”

All those rescued were expected to recover, he said.

Fitton said the boat apparently left Bimini in the Bahamas on Tuesday night and was believed to have capsized or collided with something about 2 a.m. Wednesday. Officials didn’t learn about it until another boater called more than 10 hours later.

Two helicopters, a jet and three boats were helping in the rescue effort about 15 miles off Boynton Beach, where water temperatures were in the high 70s.