The U.S. Coast Guard was searching for 10 missing people after a makeshift boat carrying 62 migrants capsized late Sunday, September 27, in the waters west of Puerto Rico near Mona Island. Most passengers were from the Dominican Republic, and two are believed to be Haitian.

Forty-nine people were rescued and at least three bodies were recovered.

Authorities said one passenger attacked others with a machete, creating panic and forcing people to jump overboard. A passing vessel spotted the scene on Monday afternoon and helped rescue four people. Without that help, Coast Guard spokesperson Ricardo Castrodad said, everyone could easily have died.

The Mona Passage, which separates Puerto Rico from Hispaniola, the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic, is one of the most dangerous crossings in the Caribbean. Migrants attempt it in overcrowded boats to escape poverty and violence.