PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AFP) — At least 40 migrants have died after a boat they were traveling in caught fire off the northern coast of Haiti, a United Nations agency said Friday, with police saying the explosion was sparked by a voodoo ritual gone wrong.
The UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that the Haitian Coast Guard rescued 41 survivors, 11 of whom were hospitalized, including some for burns.
But “at least 40 migrants have died, and several others were injured,” the IOM said.
The fire began when a passenger lit a candle to start a voodoo ritual, police spokesperson Arold Jean said.
Survivors told local media that the voodoo ceremony was meant to bring luck and help the boat avoid being intercepted by the coast guard.
“This devastating event highlights the risks faced by children, women and men migrating through irregular routes,” said Gregoire Goodstein, IOM’s chief of mission in the country.
The boat, carrying more than 80 people, had left the port of Labadee on Wednesday en route to the Turks and Caicos Islands, a 240-kilometer journey, the IOM reported, citing Haiti’s National Office for Migration.