39 missing after boat carrying immigrants from Bahamas capsizes in Florida

The US Coast Guard is scouring the waters off Florida's Atlantic coast for 39 people who have been reported missing for several days after a boat suspected of being used for human smuggling overturned.

The Coast Guard was notified early Tuesday after a Samaritan rescued a guy clinging to the partially submerged hull of the boat after it hit bad weather around 72 kilometres (45 miles) east of Fort Pierce, according to the maritime security agency's Twitter account.

The survivor told investigators that he and 39 other people departed the Bahamas' Bimini islands on Saturday night without wearing life jackets, according to the Coast Guard.

Cutter vessels and planes have been dispatched to explore an area extending from Bimini to Fort Pierce for the missing people.

The event is being investigated as a possible case of human smuggling, according to the Coast Guard. The nationality of people on board has yet to be determined.

Migrants have traditionally utilised the Bahamas as a stepping stone to the United States, as the Bimini Islands are approximately 80 kilometres (50 miles) east of Miami, Florida.

Smugglers usually aim to make the voyage during periods of calm weather, but the vessels are generally dangerously laden and prone to capsizing. Thousands of people have died over the years.

Last week, authorities rescued 32 people after their boat capsized west of Bimini, according to a Coast Guard spokesperson, Petty Officer Jose Hernandez, who spoke to the Reuters news agency. The majority of individuals trying to cross are from Haiti and Cuba.

The Coast Guard has picked up at least 557 Cuban migrants at sea since October, according to the agency.

As the Caribbean island nation grapples with economic and political challenges, as well as gang-related kidnappings, Haitian crossings have become more common.

Over the last year, the Coast Guard said it has intercepted at least 159 Haitian nationals.