The United States Coast Guard has rescued 51 people from a sinking ship near Mona Island. The search for more survivors continues while the Coast Guard interviews survivors as to how many were really on the fragile craft that was sinking. Captain Drew W. Pearson, the Coast Guard commander in San Juan Puerto Rico, told Listin Diario reporters that “apparently these people put their lives in the hands of an unscrupulous human trafficker who took them on a dangerous trip in an unseaworthy boat without life-jackets.” The USCG HC-144 Ocean Sentry and aircraft from Miami spotted the extremely overcrowded 20-foot boat taking in water as it headed to Mona Island. Coast Guard Helicopters from the Borinquen station also provided assistance in the rescue.