Rescue efforts underway after Tanzania ferry carrying 250 sinks off Zanzibar

Rescue efforts are underway after a ferry carrying more than 250 passengers sunk near Zanzibar, off the Tanzanian coast.

It is understood that the ferry, MV Salama, left Dar es Salaam earlier in the day. A safety officer told Reuters news agency that "[t]he ferry is bottom-up, and rescue operations are ongoing. So far we have not confirmed any deaths."

Reuters reported that the MV Salama was carrying 250 adults and 31 children.

Last September, close to 200 people died when an overcrowded boat carrying 800 passengers sank close to Zanzibar.