The U.S. Coast Guard was searching for nine Cubans who were believed to be in the ocean after their boat capsized Sunday morning off Lake Worth Beach.
The search began after a good Samaritan rescued a person from the water Sunday afternoon.
The survivor said he and nine others had left Cuba on Dec. 10 before the vessel capsized early Sunday morning.
Get South Florida local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC South Florida newsletters.
The incident comes as Coast Guard officials said they've intercepted a large amount of Cuban migrants in recent weeks.
Since October 1, some 3,450 migrants have been intercepted by the Coast Guard, compared to 6,182 migrants in the previous fiscal year.
On Sunday, the Coast Guard announced that 82 Cubans had been repatriated. On Friday, 164 were repatriated to Cuba, officials said.
Local
"USCG, partner agency crews are out in full force off the Florida coast doing our best to stop illegal migration at sea. Use legal means of coming to the U.S." Coast Guard Lt. J.G. Fujimoto said in a statement.