Confirmed death toll at 3 after migrant boat sinks near Mykonos
According to the latest reports, based on the accounts of the 2 survivors found so far - a Palestinian and a Syrian, swam to rocks near the shore and were spotted by authorities. The speedboat was carrying 17 people, including 4-5 women and a 7-year-old girl.
Earlier, the bodies of a man and a woman were also recovered. Up to 12 others are missing.
2 coast guard boats, a super puma helicopter and vehicles on land are taking part in the search-and-rescue operation. A team of divers and an offshore patrol vessel are expected to arrive and join the operation shortly.
Coast Guard spokesman Nikos Kokkalas said moderate winds were prevailing in the search area, adding that the incident occurred at around 6 a.m. off the northeast shore of Mykonos.
The island is more than 150 kilometers (95 miles) from the closest point on the Turkish coast.
Smugglers based in Turkey have frequently chosen open sea routes in recent years to try to avoid the heavily patrolled waters of the eastern Aegean where several large Greek islands lie close to the Turkish coast.
