Police in the St. Kitts and Nevis Federation Thursday said that a boat with at least 15 dead bodies has been found off the coast of Nevis and they will work with international bodies to determine their origin.
Local police said that they had responded to reports of a small craft drifting aimlessly off the coast on Wednesday and responded immediately, only to discover the badly decomposed bodies of the relatively large group of individuals.
It is unclear where the vessel had sailed from, police said, also noting that the final destination remains a mystery. The vessel has since been towed by the coastguard to St. Kitts for full investigation.
The discovery occurred just days after authorities in Trinidad reported finding five dead bodies of African origin in a similar craft off the southeastern coast. Authorities there believe that the vessel was probably headed to Europe or the Spanish Canary Islands as a gateway to Europe when strong currents and winds might have pushed them way off course, landing them in the Caribbean without food or water.
The tragedy off Nevis is the latest of several in the region in the past decade.
