A mysterious raft containing water bottles, apple juice, syringes and medical tubing, innerwear and a Bible was found by residents at the Floridana Beach in Florida . Following this, the U.S. Coast Guard, Brevard County Sheriff's Department and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have launched a search and rescue mission for the possible passengers of the raft, Monday.
The 18-foot raft was first spotted by residents Steve and Shelby Crouse at around 8 a.m. Monday, as they were sipping coffee on their beach-front porch. They brought the raft to the shore with the help of two other men.
It was apparent that the raft had been used by a person or people. But what happened to the passengers is unclear. "We hope to God they made it," Crouse told Florida Today. "Who knows if we'll ever find out."
Crouse said the raft was made of a wooden frame that had 'Hecho in Cuba' meaning 'Made in Cuba' tag. They also said that other items found on the raft were a bra, a child's shoe, hairbrush and a soggy potato. The medical items were labelled 'MEDICUBA.'
Brevard County Sheriff's Deputy Chris Hendrix said that possible dangerous items such as the medical supplies were taken out. He also warned passersby who were intrigued by the Cuban raft.
"For your own safety, don't touch it," he said. There was a concern about the potential disease the raft might carry. He marked it in yellow spray paint: "checked sheriff 4-14-14" so people know it's been reported.
Lori Phatterplace from the Brevard County Sheriff's Department said their job in the search was done. "We treated it as a person in the water protocol, but we never had any information that anyone was in the water." Phatterplace told ABC News. "We haven't located anyone from the raft."
