100+ missing after boat sinks off coast of Colombia

[Brent]

100 missing after boat sinks off Colombia

Wednesday, August 17, 2005; Posted: 2:47 p.m. EDT (18:47 GMT)

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) -- More than 100 people have disappeared after an Ecuadorean boat carrying illegal immigrants sank in the Pacific Ocean, the Colombian navy said Wednesday.

A fishing boat rescued seven men and two women of about 120 people who had been aboard the vessel, the Colombian navy said in a statement, adding that a Colombian navy plane and boat were searching for victims.

The statement said the navy received word of the sinking Tuesday evening but did not indicate when the sinking occurred or whether the missing were feared dead.

The disaster happened more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) off the coast of Colombia.

The boat had left the port of Manta, Ecuador, without permission, the Colombian navy said. About 120 were crammed into the boat, which had a normal capacity of 15.

In August 2004, a U.S. Coast Guard ship patrolling international waters intercepted a disabled Ecuadorean boat carrying 106 migrants.

Immigrant smuggling has become an industry in Ecuador, where 60 percent of the nation's 12 million citizens live in poverty and many dream of a better life in the United States.

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

[USCG_Hurricane_Watcher]

Wonder how much these peoples' families paid the reckless coyotes??