Death toll rises to 27 in the sinking of fishing vessel off Honduras

The sinking of a fishing vessel off north-easternHonduras has left at least 27 people dead, according to the army.MS Capitan Wally sank off the Mosquitia region on Wednesday.Twenty-seven people drowned and 55 people were rescued alive, armyspokesman Jose Domingo Meza told the news programme TN5 overnight. The victims included the captain of the vessel, the only one of thevictims who has been identified so far, daily La Prensa reported.Rescuers were on Thursday searching for nine people who remainedmissing.The death toll had earlier been given as 26.The survivors were rescued by a navy vessel which happened to be inthe area. The merchant navy was investigating the cause of theaccident, Meza said. Wind gusts were reported in the area at thetime.Another fishing vessel also suffered an accident in the same area onthe same day. All the 49 occupants of MS Miss Francely were rescued,according to Meza.The vessel could only accommodate 31 people, but it carried 49, localmedia reported.