Update: Norman Atlantic’s Death Toll Rises to 12

Italian authorities have found another charred body  on board the fire-stricken Norman Atlantic ferry, the Hellenic Coast Guard informed.

The body was found on a truck cabin on deck four.  Italian authorities have transferred the body to the Forensic Medicine Institute in Bari, where identification activities are ongoing.

The latest discovery brings the death toll to 12 people, with 18 people still reported missing.

The Italian-flagged RoRo/passenger ferry caught fire off the coast of Greece in the early hours of Sunday, December 28.

ANEK Lines, the operator of the ferry, said that at the time of the accident, there were 475 people on board.

Italian and Greek rescue crews managed to airlift 427 people from the burning ferry.

Investigators fear that the number of casualties might rise on the account of unregistered immigrants suspected of being smuggled in cars and trucks on the ferry.

The Norman Atlantic is owned by the Italian company VISEMAR di Navigazione S.R.L. At the time of the accident, the vessel was on the Patras – Igoumenitsa – Ancona route, 35 miles north of Corfu, sailing in international waters.

Norman Atlantic was towed to the port of Bari where an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.

 World Maritime News Staff, Image: Italian Ministry of Transport