Two Perish As They Flee Cuba

A boat carrying 16 Cubans away from their communist homeland overturned Thursday, leaving two dead, one missing, and six suffering from exposure.

A Coast Guard helicopter spotted the boat taking on water. Miami is having its coldest spell of the winter, with a predawn low of 46.

Coast Guard boats picked up 11 people, including a child, about 3 1/2 miles off North Miami Beach. Two other survivors were flown ashore. The Coast Guard recovered two bodies and was still searching for a missing person more than two hours after sighting the boat, said Ensign Justin Cardoza.

Crossings of the 90-mile-wide Florida Straits have grown sporadic since more than 30,000 Cubans made the exodus to Florida in 1994. They are more common in summer.

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