Tourist boat, speedboat collision in Greece leaves 4 dead

ATHENS, Greece – A speedboat collided with a tourist vessel off the Greek island of Aegina near Athens Tuesday, killing four people, including a child, and injuring five others, the coast guard said.

Twenty people, including the injured, were rescued from the waters between Aegina and the small deserted islet of Moni, where the tourist boat was transporting holiday-makers for a swim, the coast guard said, revising an earlier figure of 21 people rescued. Two of the injured were in serious condition.

Authorities said no further people were reported missing, but a search and rescue operation involving several patrol boats, two helicopters, coast guard divers and nearby private vessels was continuing as a precaution.

More than 20 people were believed to have been on board the tourist boat when the collision occurred, sinking the small vessel, authorities said. The coast guard said the precise number of those who had been on the tourist vessel and details of how the accident occurred were unclear as rescue efforts were focused on locating survivors. The nationalities of the survivors were also not immediately clear.

Four bodies were recovered from the water: three men, one of them believed to have been the tourist boat captain, and that of a 9-year-old child.

The coast guard said four people had been on board the speedboat, none of whom were injured. The vessel’s captain was arrested while authorities launched an investigation into the crash.

Aegina’s proximity to the Greek capital makes it a popular destination for Greeks and foreign tourists. Small tourist boats ferry holiday-makers from the island’s port village of Perdika to Moni, an islet inhabited by deer and peacocks, and which features a popular sandy cove.