#Rescue - Some 466 people were being evacuated this morning from a car ferry that reported a fire on board while sailing from Greece to Italy this morning, according to RTÉ News.
As of 8am this morning Irish time, 130 people had been moved from the Norman Atlantic via a rescue boat to a nearby container ship some 44 nautical miles west of Corfu.
Passengers have described a lack of co-ordination in the evacuation effort since the fire broke out at 4am Irish time.
"They tried to lower some boats, but not all of us could get in," one person claiming to be a passenger told a Greek TV station by phone.
And as The Irish Times reports, poor weather in the area - with wind speeds of up to 88km per hour - has made the rescue effort "complicated".
“We are doing everything we can to save those on board and no one, no one will be left helpless in this tough situation,” said Greek shipping minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis.
The incident comes almost three years after the wrecking of the Costa Concordia in the waters off western Italy.
RTÉ News has more on this developing story HERE.
