Athens, Greece • Hundreds of passengers and crew braved smoky fire, frigid temperatures and gale-force winds Sunday as they waited for nearly a day to be evacuated from a burning ferry adrift in rough seas between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured in the risky rescue operation.
The Italian navy said 201 of the 478 people on the ferry sailing from the Greek port of Patras to Ancona in Italy had been evacuated by late Sunday night. Most were airlifted by helicopter to other merchant vessels nearby, though a few were flown to hospitals in southern Italy to be treated for hypothermia.
"It will be a very difficult night. A night in which we hope we will be able to rescue all on board," Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, Greek Merchant Marine minister, said in Athens.
He said 10 merchant ships were in the area assisting rescue efforts, and that those who had already taken on dozens of passengers from the stricken ferry would remain in the area until the operation was over. Only then would it be determined where they would go, Varvitsiotis said.
Nevertheless, officials in the Adriatic port of Brindisi were preparing for the first group to arrive — about 49 people, expected sometime after midnight, the coast guard said.
The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, carrying 422 passengers and 56 crew members. Passengers huddled on the vessel's upper decks, pelted by rain and hail and struggled to breathe through the thick smoke, passengers told Greek media by phone.
"We are outside. We are very cold. The ship is full of smoke," passenger Giorgos Stiliaras told Greek Mega TV.
He recalled people being awakened by "the smell of burning plastic" and that the heat from the fire felt like the floors were "boiling."
The ferry was last inspected by the Patras Port Authority on Dec. 19 and six "deficiencies" were found, but none were so grave as to keep it in port, according to the report on the European Maritime Safety Agency's website.
The deficiencies involved a "malfunctioning" fire door as well as "missing" emergency lighting and batteries and defective "watertight doors."
The ship manufacturer, Carlo Visentini, was quoted by the ANSA news agency as saying that only one of the 160 fireproof doors was found to be problematic in the inspection and that it was located above the fire zone. Visentini said the problem was fixed immediately to the satisfaction of the inspectors.
Italy and Greece sent navy and coast guard vessels and helicopters to the rescue, while nearby merchant ships lined up to form a barrier to protect the ferry from towering waves. As darkness fell, Italian Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti said rescue operations would continue through the night.
The Italian coast guard, which was coordinating the rescue operation, said those flames visible from the outside of the ship had been extinguished about 16 hours after the blaze began. But the ferry was still enveloped in dense smoke, which the coast guard probably said was being fueled by some hot spots inside the ship.
An Italian air force helicopter pilot said smoke was invading the helicopter cabin, making rescue even more challenging.
"With the wind, smoke entered into the helicopter cabin, acrid smoke," Maj. Antonio Laneve told Italian state TV. Some of those who they were trying to rescue were very frightened of being hoisted up by helicopter given the adverse weather, he said.
The Italian navy said the man who died and his injured wife were transported by helicopter to the southern Italian city of Brindisi. It was unclear how the death and injury occurred
In this photo taken from a nearby ship, smoke rises from the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic ferry after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. The ferry carrying some hundreds of passengers caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered their evacuation. (AP Photo/SKAI TV Station) GREECE OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT
In this photo taken from a nearby ship, smoke rises from the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. The ferry carrying hundreds of passengers caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered the evacuation. (AP Photo/SKAI TV Station) GREECE OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT
In this photo taken from a nearby boat showing a life raft from the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic ferry after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. The ferry carrying some hundreds of passengers caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered their evacuation. (AP Photo/SKAI TV Station) GREECE OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT
Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, second right, speaks with Nikolaos Lagadianos Greece's Coast Guard spokesman at the operation room of the Ministry in Piraeus port, near Athens during the fire of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic ferry in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. The ferry carrying some hundreds of passengers caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered their evacuation. Greek and Italian rescue helicopters and vessels struggled to reach the stricken ferry, with nearby merchant ships lining up to form a wall against the raging gusts. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis)
Athanasios Athanasopoulos chief of Greece's coast guard stands in front of a map at the Merchant Marine operation room in Piraeus port, near Athens on Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. The the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic ferry caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, carrying some hundreds of passengers off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered their evacuation. Greek and Italian rescue helicopters and vessels struggled to reach the stricken ferry, with nearby merchant ships lining up to form a wall against the raging gusts. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis)
In this image taken from a video released by the Italian Air Force, smoke billows from the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, top, after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. A ferry carrying about 470 people caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered the evacuation. Greek and Italian rescue helicopters and vessels struggled to reach the stricken ferry, battered by 90 kilometer per hour (55 mph) winds that sent it up toward the strait between Italy and Albania. (AP Photo/Italian Air Force)
In this image provided by the Italian Navy, smoke billows from the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. A fire erupted on a ferry carrying 478 people from Greece to Italy on Sunday, leaving one person dead and trapping hundreds on top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered evacuation. The Italian Navy said that the victim and an injured person were transported by helicopter to the southern Italian city of Brindisi on Sunday evening. Greek and Italian rescue helicopters and vessels struggled to reach the crippled ferry, battered by 90 kilometer per hour (55 mph) winds that pushed it toward the Albanian coast. (AP Photo/Italian Navy)
In this photo taken from a nearby ship, smoke rises from the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. The ferry carrying hundreds of passengers caught fire off the Greek island of Corfu early Sunday, trapping passengers on the top decks as gale-force winds and choppy seas hampered the evacuation. (AP Photo/SKAI TV Station) GREECE OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT
In this image taken from a video released by the Italian Air Force, a woman holds her baby as they are rescued by an Italian Air Force helicopter after the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Italian Air Force)
In this image taken from a video released by the Italian Air Force, a woman holds her baby as they are rescued by an Italian Air Force helicopter after the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Italian Air Force)
In this image taken from a video released by the Italian Air Force, rescued people are seen inside an Italian Air Force helicopter after the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Italian Air Force)
A woman is carried by paramedics as passengers of the ferry that caught fire in the channel between Italy and Albania are transported to the town of Otranto, near Lecce, southern Italy, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Ivan Tortorella)
A woman is carried into an ambulance as rescued passengers of the ferry that caught fire in the channel between Italy and Albania are transported to the town of Otranto, near Lecce, southern Italy, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Ivan Tortorella)
Paramedics wait for rescued passengers of the ferry that caught fire in the channel between Italy and Albania, at the Otranto harbor, near Lecce, southern Italy, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Ivan Tortorella)
In this image taken from a video released by the Italian Air Force, a woman holds her baby as they are rescued by an Italian Air Force helicopter after the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Italian Air Force)
In this photo taken from a nearby ship, vessels try to extinguish the fire at the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek military and coast guard rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves Sunday as they struggled to rescue hundreds of people trapped on a burning ferry adrift between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The Italian Defense Ministry said 165 of the 478 people on the ferry had been evacuated by Sunday evening, more than 14 hours after the fire erupted. (AP Photo/SKAI TV Station) GREECE OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT
In this image taken from video and released by the Italian Navy, a woman is lifted from the deck of the Italian-flagged ferry Norman Atlantic by a rescue helicopter after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014. Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Sunday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire and adrift in the channel between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, traveling from the western Greek port of Patras to the Italian port of Ancona on the Adriatic, with 422 passengers and 56 crew members on board. (AP Photo/Italian Navy)
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