At least 5 dead, 7 still missing after boat capsizes off Haitian coast

PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI  Seven people are still missing after search and rescue teams located 11 survivors following Tuesday’s small shipwreck off the Haitian coast, officials said Wednesday.

The boat, which was traveling from the island of Gonave to Arcahaie, both part of the Ouest Department of Haiti, was carrying 23 people and a number of goods, including bags of charcoal and bananas, Nadia Lochard of the Haitian civil protection told Haitilibre.com.

Lochard said the shipwreck was probably caused by rough waves and strong winds before making it to Arcahaie, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) northwest of the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince.

Inspector of the Police Nationale d’Haiti, Arsene Charmant-Saint-Jean, confirmed the number of survivors and missing people. Among the survivors was an 8-year-old boy who made it to the coast after holding on to a bag of charcoal. His mother, however, was among the fatal victims. A source from the Haitian coastguard told the media outlet that the chances of finding the seven missing people were slim.