Firefighting vessels were deployed to surround the Euroferry Olympia after they worked all night to put out the flames. The vessel was carrying over 290 passengers and crew when the fire broke out.

Around 280 people were evacuated to Corfu by the Greek coast guard and crews from other boats. After discovering that the passenger list did not contain a ferry passenger, authorities increased the number of people considered missing to 12.

"A large rescue and firefighting effort as well as the search for 12 missing people that includes three Greeks is ongoing," Giannis Plakiotakis, shipping minister, told private Skai television.

Other passengers who were missing are believed to have been mostly from Bulgaria. Officials claimed that the rescuers included citizens from Albania, Turkey and Bulgaria as well as Greece, Italy, Greece, Romania, Greece and Lithuania.

Three hours after the ferry had left Igoumenitsa, northwest Greece, for Brindisi in Italy, the fire broke out. The vessel transported 153 trucks and 32 vehicles.

It was not clear what caused the fire. Italy-based ferry operator said that the fire started in a place where vehicles were parked.