Many feared dead in sinking of asylum boat

Some 45 people seeking asylum in Australia have been rescued off the coast of Java following the apparent sinking of their boat, believed to be carrying 150. Many of those still missing are believed to have drowned after an initial search was ended when the vessel, which had been taking on water, could not be located, Sky News reported. Australian naval vessels and commercial ships assisted in the search and rescue in the Sunda Strait between Java and Christmas Island. The asylum boat sent out a distress call to the Australian Maritime and Safety Authority about 1:30 a.m., local time, Wednesday when its pump failed. A search coordinated by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency failed to locate the boat or any survivors. The first survivors were found early Thursday after the agency received new information about the probable location of the boat based on drift modeling. The survivors were found about 40 miles from Java, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported. Six of those rescued were taken to the Indonesian port of Merak for medical attention. Three people received care aboard the Australian naval vessel HMAS Maitland. They were reported to be in stable condition with serious injuries.