One dead, 10 missing after fire on Italian-flagged Corfu ferry

ferry

ATHENS, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- The charred body of a man was recovered on Sunday in a truck on a ferry off the Greek island of Corfu, the local fire brigade announced.

A fire had broken out on the car deck of the ferry on Friday, after it departed from the port of Igoumenitsa en route to Brindisi in Italy. 280 people were rescued from the vessel, including two men who were found several hours after the mass evacuation.

On Sunday, one more person was found alive on the ship, a 21-year-old Belarusian man who was transferred to a local hospital in a stable condition.

The man said that for several hours after the incident he had heard voices on the ship, leading to hopes that more survivors could be found, Greek Coast Guard spokesperson Nikolaos Alexiou told Greek national broadcaster ERT.

Ten people were still missing as the rescue operation continued on Sunday.

The Italian-flagged Euroferry Olympia has been towed to a safe area north of Corfu, while firefighters are still battling pockets of fire on the ship, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.