JOHANNESBURG — The remains of 52 people have been found after some 130 migrants went missing off Djibouti when two boats capsized in rough waters, the UN migration agency said Wednesday, as body bags were laid out on the sand.

Sixteen survivors were recovered, and the tiny East African nation’s coast guard continued a search and rescue operation after Tuesday’s accident, the UN said in a statement. Witnesses said large waves caused the overloaded boats to tip over about a half-hour after departing.

Thousands of migrants from the turbulent Horn of Africa region set off every year from Djibouti to cross the Bab al-Mandab Strait for the Arabian Peninsula with hopes of finding work in rich Gulf countries.

The crossing is dangerous, with smugglers in some cases forcing migrants overboard before reaching their destination. Other boats have been fired on as they approach Yemen, where fighting continues between progovernment forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels.

At least 199 people have drowned off the Djibouti coast near Obock, where the latest capsizing occurred, since 2014.

associated press