Two dead, six missing as boat sinks off Spain

At least two people died and six went missing after a Portuguese fishing boat sank off the northern Spanish coast before dawn Monday, rescuers said.

The boat ran aground on the island of Erbosa, half a nautical mile off Cape Penas in the northern region of Asturias, and was left semi-submerged, Xinhua quoted Spain's maritime rescue services as saying.

Only one of its nine crew members, a Spaniard, could be rescued by a nearby fishing boat. The nationalities of the other eight dead or missing are four Spaniards, two Indonesians and two Portuguese.

Two helicopters, five boats and a team of divers have been deployed to search for signs of the missing crew, a statement added.