Thu, June 28, 2012
At least 125 people have been rescued after a boat sank north of Christmas Island, a week after an asylum-seeker boat sank in the area.
Australian officials said merchant vessels had gathered survivors from the water after the boat sent a distress call early on Wednesday. One body had also been recovered.
Estimates put 150 people on board, including women and children.
Two Australian navy vessels and an aircraft are now in the area.
In a report to parliament, Prime Minister Julia Gillard said that between 123 and 133 people were believed to have been on board.
But the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) later released a statement with the revised figure.
It added that the boat capsized approximately 13 nautical miles (24km) east of Christmas Island, which is part of Australian territory. This is also where the other boat capsized on Thursday.
An image of the vessel, taken before it sank by one of the merchant vessels at the scene and released by the AMSA, showed people crowded on the deck of the boat.
Authorities temporarily called off the search as night fell, the ABC news agency reports, and will resume their efforts on Thursday.
Last week, a boat carrying asylum-seekers also sank off Christmas Island.
Christmas Island lies off Australia's north-west coast. It is closer to Indonesia than Australia, and is targeted by asylum-seekers hoping to get to Australia.
These boats are often overloaded and poorly maintained. About 50 asylum-seekers died when their boat broke up on rocks off Christmas Island in December 2010.
(Agencies)
