Trump Contradicts Official on Bahamians' Travel Documents

President wants to keep out 'some very bad people'
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 9, 2019 5:45 PM CDT
Trump Contradicts Official on Bahamians' Travel Documents
A coroner's team carries a body in the Marsh Harbour area of Abaco Island, Bahamas, on Monday. A US team found five bodies in the rubble Monday.   (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Anyone in the Bahamas whose life is in danger is "going to be allowed to come to the United States, whether you have travel documents or not." On the other hand, "Everybody needs totally proper documentation." The first statement came Monday from the acting head of Customs and Border Protection, the Washington Post reports, the second from President Trump later in the day. "We have to be very careful," Trump said, to not allow "some very bad people and very bad gang members" in from the Bahamas, which is dealing with the destruction caused by Hurricane Dorian. About 130 people being evacuated from the Bahamas were removed from a ferry on its way to Florida on Sunday night, per CNN. The ferry operator said US immigration authorities told him that only people with valid US visas would be allowed to enter the US. The US said there was just confusion.

In the Bahamas on Monday, U.S. emergency workers discovered five bodies in the rubble and said they expect to find more, per the AP. Rescue workers in hazard suits searched for bodies, per the Guardian. Food and supplies were being brought in by relief agencies. Shelters in Nassau are filling with thousands of displaced people, and thousands of others have little access to water and sanitary facilities. The Pan American Health Organization warned of possible outbreaks of diarrhea and waterborne diseases because of tainted drinking water. The official death toll is 44. (More Hurricane Dorian stories.)

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