Cruise ship rescues migrants off Florida coast

Crew members aboard Celebrity Beyond rescued 19 migrants from a crowded boat Monday and crew members aboard Carnival Celebration spotted five people in distress on a small vessel about 29 miles northwest of Cuba.

Once the migrants were rescued from their drifting boat, the Carnival Celebration crew members contacted the U.S. Coast Guard, which took them into custody offshore. After the migrants were aboard the ship, crew members provided them with blankets, a change of clothes, food and a medical evaluation.

The Coast Guard was contacted. Officials say the rescues are the latest episode of hundreds of migrants making or attempting landings in the Florida Keys over the past several days. Most of the migrants are from Cuba and Haiti and are escaping economic turmoil, food shortages and inflation.