At least 79 dead after overcrowded migrant vessel sinks off Greece; hundreds may be missing

By DEREK GATOPOULOS and NICHOLAS PAPHITIS
Associated Press

KALAMATA, Greece (AP) — An overcrowded fishing boat carrying migrants capsized and sank off the coast of Greece, leaving at least 79 people dead and many more missing in one of the worst disasters of its kind this year. Authorities said coast guard, navy and merchant vessels were fanning out Wednesday night for a vast search-and-rescue operation that also included a plane and a helicopter. More than 100 people have been rescued so far after the boat went down in international waters southwest of Greece’s southern Peloponnese peninsula. It was unclear how many passengers might still be in the water or trapped in the sunken vessel.