( AP ) - An overcrowded boat carrying at least at least 60 illegal migrants sank off Turkey's Aegean coast and at least 31 died, an official said Monday.
The 50-foot boat is believed to have sunk in rough weather Saturday off the coast of Seferihisar, a town south of the city of Izmir, local Gov. Orhan Sefik Guldibi told reporters.
Guldibi said rescuers had recovered 31 bodies that washed ashore. Six of the migrants were rescued late Sunday and were hospitalized, mostly for shock.
Two of the survivors were Palestinians, but there was no immediate information on the nationalities of the other migrants.
"The survivors said there were between 60 and 70 people on board. We are afraid that the death toll will rise," Guldibi told the state-run Anatolia news agency earlier.
A Coast Guard boat searched the sea while a helicopter hovered above.
Thousands of immigrants from Asia and Africa enter Turkey illegally on their way to European countries in search of jobs and a better life.
Smugglers often take the migrants to Greece on fragile and overcrowded boats, and accidents are common.
The European Union, which Turkey wants to join, is pressing Turkey to crack down on illegal immigration.
EU-member Greece, which has a 8,000 mile coastline dotted with thousands of islands, has accused Turkey of not doing enough to halt the flow of illegal migrants.