A Boat Capsized Off Florida & The Coast Guard Is Searching For Dozens Of Missing People

The United States Coast Guard is currently searching for dozens of missing people after a boat capsized off the coast of Florida.

A "good Samaritan" found one survivor sitting on the overturned hull of the boat and took him to safety on Tuesday morning, the Coast Guard said. He was treated at the hospital for dehydration and sun exposure.

The survivor said that he and 39 others left Bimini, in the Bahamas, on the night of January 19 and ran into severe weather the next morning. The storm caused their 25-foot boat to capsize. No one on board was wearing life jackets, according to the man.

One person was found dead. Authorities were still searching for the rest of the missing people off the coast of Florida on Wednesday, the Coast Guard said.

"Once we received initial notification of this case, the Coast Guard, along with federal, state and local partners, initiated the search involving multiple Coast Guard and Navy aircraft and Coast Guard cutters, as well as other surface assets from other agencies," said Captain Jo-Ann F. Burdian at a press conference on Wednesday morning.

No details were given about the nationality of those on the capsized ship.

The USCG released a weather advisory alert for small vessels over the weekend encouraging boaters not to go out due to high winds, cold fronts and waves that could reach 7-9 feet high.

Officials suspect that the boat was part of a human smuggling operation, although no one has been charged.

"So far we've searched an area roughly 7,500 nautical miles, which for reference is the size of the state of New Jersey," said Burdian.

A similar event happened on January 21 when the USCG reported that 32 people were rescued from a capsized boat in a "suspected migrant venture."

The migrants were taken for medical evaluation and handed over to authorities, according to the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.