Friday 18 / July / 2025
Bogota: UNHCR has said that 21 Venezuelans remain missing after their boat sank enroute to Trinidad and Tobago.
UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch said, "This tragic incident highlights the extreme risks of sea journeys and other irregular cross-border movements undertaken by refugees and migrants. It also underscores the desperation of those forced to flee their homes and the extraordinary difficulties faced on their journey."
According to the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard, a vessel called “Jhonnaly Jose” carrying at least 25 people from the Venezuelan town of Güiria towards Trinidad and Tobago capsized in the early hours of Wednesday 24 April.
The Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard said four people had been rescued in a joint search and rescue effort with their Venezuelan counterparts, although other reports suggest a total of nine people have been saved. At least 21 people, among them women and children, are still unaccounted for and rescue efforts are continuing.
More than three million Venezuelan refugees and migrants have left their country since 2015, mostly to neighboring countries, including islands of the southern Caribbean.
