The rescued, who were from countries such as Afghanistan, Ecuador and Venezuela, were traveling to Panama.
In the framework of sea control operations, Colombian Navy units safeguarded the lives of 33 people who were being transported irregularly late at night in the Caribbean Sea.
Colombian sailors detected three boats moving suspiciously in the waters of the Gulf of Urabá. Immediately, the Coastguards went to the place to intercept the boats, making a call to the sailors to stop and making all the visual and audible signals to stop. The boats began evasive and dangerous maneuvers, finding themselves in a parallel way and sticking their structures, passing crew members irresponsibly between them.
Members of the Military Forces carry out the control operations established in the maritime interception procedures for the immobilization of ships. Face the refusal to stop, shots were fired at the engines of the suspicious boats, in order to stop one of them.
It was possible to identify people covered with tarps inside the benches. The pilot of the boat reported feeling acute pain and having a wound on his body, while a 24-year-old woman reported that she had pain in her left ear, so a naval nurse provided primary care.
The personnel were transferred to a military unit, given the poor conditions of the boat in which they were traveling, and subsequently, they were taken to a safe port.
Once on the ground, the injured were immediately transported to the Turbo - Antioquia municipal hospital, where they received specialized care. The woman was released, while the man, who is out of danger, remains under medical observation.
The rescued people, 31 foreigners and two Colombians, were put into custody of the authorities to continue with the corresponding procedures. For their part, the two individuals who were driving the boat, both of Colombian nationality, were put into custody of the authority to answer for the alleged crime of migrant smuggling.
Source: Press – Navy of Colombia
