MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - A man who, authorities said, was rescued off the Florida Keys while on a wind surfboard is a cancer survivor who was fleeing Cuba, according to his family in South Florida.
Pictures shared by the U.S. Coast Guard captured the windsurfer as he floated toward the Florida Straits.
Investigators said he was spotted about 15 miles south of Islamorada on Wednesday.
When a Coast Guard crew reached the windsurfer, rescuers said, he was wearing a life jacket and a backpack. He was also holding a GPS device in one hand and a cellphone in the other.
“He was showing symptoms of dehydration, fatigue; he was very weak,” said USCG Petty Officer Martin McAdams.
Dunia Rodriguez, the windsurfer’s cousin, identified him as Elian Lopez and said he is a diving instructor who began his journey from Cuba on Tuesday.
Rodriguez said his family in South Florida had no idea he was coming.
“He basically left, and only his wife and his daughter knew about it, and they expected him to arrive before night of the next day,” she said. “He had the expectation that he was going to make it.”
Family members said Lopez kissed his wife and daughter goodbye, grabbed a life jacket and windsurf board and risked everything for a chance at freedom.
As Lopez battled winds of 25 mph and fierce currents reaching Islamorada, loved ones said, he sent his wife a text.
“Letting her know that he was very desperate, and basically, she just thought that he was going to die,” said Rodriguez.
USCG officials said Lopez’s GPS and cellphone likely saved his life.
“That’s what helped us locate him, because if he hadn’t been able to give us that GPS position, it’s a lot more difficult to find a person in the water,” said McAdams.
Lopez’s loved ones said he has cancer, and he saw the journey to the U.S. as the only way to receive the medical care he needs.
Now his family is pleading with the U.S. government to allow him to say, claiming that if he is sent back to Cuba, he will be left there to die.
“We’re not asking for monetary help. We just want him to not be taken back to Cuba due to his medical condition,” said Rodriguez.
Lopez’s family members have started a petition on Change.org to help prevent his deportation. For more information, click here.
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