MIAMI – The Coast Guard on Thursday transported 14 Cuban migrants back to their homeland while another was sent to Guantanamo Bay for further questioning by federal immigration officials.

The 15 migrants were rescued by the Coast Guard on Saturday night from two 16-foot rafts, which had been lashed together. They were discovered about 40 miles south of the Dry Tortugas.

The migrants had been at sea for several days and were in various states of hypothermia and dehydration. Several were unconscious, said Petty Officer Anastasia Burns in a prepared release.

"These migrants are lucky to be alive. As we have seen all too often, the Straits of Florida do not treat these homemade, ill-conceived vessels kindly, and as a result their passengers are put in extreme peril of losing their lives," Capt. Wayne Justice, chief of operations for the Seventh Coast Guard District, said in a prepared release. "If our discovery of these migrants had been delayed by just a matter of hours, some of them probably would not be alive today."

Once on board Coast Guard cutters, all the migrants received food, water, lifejackets and medical attention.

The cutter Kodiak Island repatriated the 14 Cuban migrants to Bahia de Cabanas today around 10. a.m.

Determination of each migrant's status was made by the U.S. Government and coordinated with Homeland Security immigration officials, the Coast Guard said.

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