more than 100 migrants rescued after fishing boat shipwreck

ATHENS (AP) — A vast search and rescue operation off the coast of southern Greece was trying to find the occupants of a fishing boat that capsized with dozens of migrants on board.

Authorities said 104 people have been rescued so far following the incident that occurred early Wednesday about 75 kilometers (46 miles) southwest of the country’s southern Peloponnese region. Four of the survivors were hospitalized with symptoms of hypothermia.

Six Coast Guard ships, a Navy frigate, a military transport and an Air Force helicopter, in addition to several private boats, were participating in the search for others who would be missing.

The boat, which was bound for Italy, is believed to have left the Tobruk area of ​​eastern Libya. Italian coastguards first notified Greek authorities and the European Union’s border protection agency Frontex of the presence of the fishing vessel on Tuesday.

Increasingly, human smugglers are taking large vessels into international waters off the Greek coast to avoid local coast guard patrols.

Ninety migrants aboard a US-flagged yacht in the area were rescued on Sunday after making a distress call.

Also on Wednesday, a yacht with more than 70 migrants on board was towed to a port on the south coast of the Greek island of Crete after authorities received a distress call.