Three people die as migrant boat sinks off Crete

Three people died and fifty-three were rescued when a migrant boat sank off the southern Greek island of Crete on Monday.

According to the port authority, one of the passengers called the emergency number 112, informing them that 16 people were on the vessel that was sinking.

A Greek naval frigate, an air force helicopter, two coast guard boats and three merchant ships, took part in the search.

Efforts continued late into the evening to locate anyone who might have been in the water, as the survivors were not in a position to give accurate numbers of how many had been on board when the vessel went down.

The dead included two children and a woman.

There was no indication where the vessel sailed from, how big it was or where it had been heading to.