Rescue services were not immediately available for more details. Picture used for illustrative purposes only.

Gulf Today Report

At least 60 people died, including 12 children, when a wooden sailing boat carrying migrants to Europe crashed against rocks near the southern Italian coast early on Sunday, Reuters reported.

The vessel sank in rough seas before dawn near Steccato di Cutro, a seaside resort on the eastern coast of Calabria.

Quoting unidentified port authorities near the coastal town of Crotone, in Calabria, the toe of the Italian peninsula, RAI said the ship was carrying more than 100 migrants when it ran into trouble at dawn on Sunday.

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Manuela Curra, a provincial government official, told Reuters that 81 people had survived the shipwreck. Twenty of them were hospitalised, including one person in intensive care.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, who travelled to the scene, said 20-30 people might still be missing, amid reports from survivors that the boat had been carrying between 150 and 200 migrants.

It said vessels from the coast guard, border police and firefighters were involved in rescue efforts.

Coast guard and other rescue services were not immediately available for more details.