Two people have died and one is missing after a sea accident with migrants near the coast of Sicily, the Italian coast guard announced today.

Emergency services approached the ship in distress with migrants on board. When a Coast Guard patrol boat approached them, the men ended up in the water for reasons still unexplained.

According to the coast guard, 34 people were immediately taken on board and brought to Syracuse in eastern Sicily. One of the rescued migrants died shortly after arriving in Syracuse, and another died later in hospital. The search for the missing person is ongoing.

Authorities said the migrant boat included people from Syria, Egypt and Bangladesh. The Italian Interior Ministry reported that this year almost 33.900 people arrived illegally in Italy by boat. In the same period last year, about 89.400 have arrived.