The U.S. Coast Guard says a boat carrying Haitian migrants has capsized off the Turks and Caicos islands, leaving about 85 people missing.

U.S. officials say the boat was carrying up to 200 Haitians when it sank Monday, stranding at least 113 survivors on several reefs near the British territory.

Turks and Caicos authorities used small boats to rescue many of the survivors. U.S. Coast Guard vessels and helicopters helped with the rescue operation. One helicopter airlifted several injured survivors to the Turks and Caicos island of Providenciales for treatment.

U.S. officials say two bodies have been recovered from the area, revising an earlier statement that four bodies were found.

Haitians migrants often take to the seas in overcrowded boats to leave their country, which is the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. Many seek a better life in nearby islands or in the United States.

The Turks and Caicos islands are located north of Hispaniola, the island comprising Haiti and the Dominican Republic.


Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.