Seven people were killed and 432 others rescued after the Italian passenger ferry Norman Atlantic caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, the Greek coastguards announced Monday.
The ferry was carrying 480 passengers who planned to spend the Christmas holidays in Italy, in addition to 56-strong crew and some 200 vehicles when it sent a mayday after fire broke out on its deck on Sunday morning.
Italian and Greek rescue teams continue searching for the missing persons.
The Italian-flagged ferry, operated by Greek ferry company Anek Lines, set sail from Patras seaport, west Greece, en route to Ancona, east Italy, in the small hours of yesterday.