Federal officials have grown more concerned by the rising numbers of Haitians and Cubans taking to the sea in an attempt to enter the United States. Their fear is that, along with those who are apprehended, many others are dying while attempting the dangerous trip.

In the first 10 months of the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, 4,314 Haitians have either been stopped at sea or are known to have made landfall in either Puerto Rico or on the U.S. mainland.

That is just shy of the 4,358 Haitians intercepted in all of last year and 73 percent higher than the 2,501 apprehended in fiscal 2012.

The number of Cubans known to have set sail illegally so far this year stands at 2,985, which is nearly 900 more than the total for fiscal 2013.