Five dead as boat sinks in Italy

Rome, Aug 19: At least five people died when a boat carrying some 100 illegal immigrants sank off the coast of Sicily early today morning, the Coast Guard said.

The boat, about 10 metres long, sank some 10 miles off the island of Lampedusa. One Navy ship was already following the ship and was on the scene when it sank.

A Coast Guard official at the rescue coordination centre in Rome told Reuters that as of about three hours after the accident about 80 immigrants had been rescued and that the bodies of five victims had been plucked from the sea.

The official said survivors recounted that there were between 100 and 120 immigrants on board.

The rescue operation, involving Navy and Coast Guard boats and helicopters, was still underway.

The southern island is frequently the place where illegal immigrants leaving from north Africa try to enter Italy.

Reuters