US Coast Guard comes to the aid of a migrant in the Florida Straits. They shared tales and laughter as they embarked on their journey from Havana to the United States at 03:00 on November 16, 2022. By daybreak, they found themselves 30 miles off the Cuban coast. The fishing boat, designed for eight passengers, was overloaded with 20 people, including four children below the age of seven and two teenagers.

Despite its heavy load, the boat cruised at a rapid pace. However, as the wind intensified, water began seeping in.

"In a matter of seconds, a misalignment of the helm and an incoming wave caused the boat to be engulfed, sinking instantly," recounts Alexander, one of the two survivors.

"It went down like a torpedo due to its speed. There was no time for anything."

Alexander, seated at the stern, managed to leap off just before the boat vanished beneath the surface.

He watched as the vessel disappeared into the abyss of the Florida Straits, where the water is over a mile deep.

The adults resurfaced, but the youngest children, who had been in the boat's cabin, never emerged.

Their mothers screamed in agony.

One boy was briefly kept afloat by a man who placed the child on his shoulders, but the burden proved too great. "It's impossible to stay afloat with a person on top of you," recalls Alexander.

Equipped with a compass, Alexander attempted to guide the adults, who were struggling to stay afloat in the Caribbean Sea, towards land. However, those who had lost their children refused to leave the spot where the boat sank. Eventually, the group dispersed.

By nightfall, Alexander lost sight of the others. Instead of continuing to swim, he relinquished control to the current, hoping it would increase his chances of being spotted by a passing ship following the same course.

He drifted for two days and two nights before being rescued by Cuban migrants aboard another overcrowded boat.

However, this second vessel also met a watery fate mere hours later.

This time, Alexander clung to a plastic box to keep himself afloat.

"The waves were like mountains," he recollects.

During the night, he began hallucinating, momentarily believing he had reached an island. He released his grip on the box and nearly drowned.

With hope for rescue dwindling, a merchant ship spotted him around 10:00 the following morning and alerted the US Coast Guard.

He and eight other survivors from the second sinking were plucked from the sea, alive. Exhausted beyond measure, Alexander, in his thirties, was unable to walk or eat for several days.

A year of tragedy

Alexander may have narrowly escaped death twice during his migration attempt, but data from the International Organization for Migration's Missing Migrants Project reveals that many others have not been as fortunate.

Their data shows that last year witnessed the second-highest number of migrant fatalities worldwide and the highest in the Americas since records began in 2014. At least 1,400 people lost their lives while migrating in the region in 2022.

The IOM warns that these figures represent a conservative estimate and that the actual number of fatalities is likely higher.

Drowning overwhelmingly accounted for the most migrant deaths in 2022.

A bar chart illustrates the causes of death during migration routes in 2022, with drowning claiming 3,714 lives, violence 981, vehicle accidents 800, mixed or unknown causes 462, lack of adequate shelter, food, or water 454, sickness 308, and accidental death 157.

Dire circumstances in their home countries often drive individuals to undertake perilous migration journeys.

"Politics and violence often underlie their decision, driven by economic factors," says Andrew Selee, president