All passengers rescued after Italian ferry fire, seven reported dead

All passengers have been evacuated from an Italian car ferry that caught fire near a Greek island on Sunday morning, prompting a massive rescue mission. Seven people were reported dead and several injured.

The rescue operation finished on Monday afternoon with the rescue of all passengers, according to Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

Six dead men were found aboard the ferry on Monday, and a Greek national died on Sunday after becoming trapped in a lifeboat chute, and six people were also hospitalized, the Italian Coast Guard said.

It is unclear what caused the fire to break out on Sunday on the car deck of the ferry, which was carrying 478 people from the Greek city of Patras to Ancona in Italy.