Three dead, 13 missing after shipwreck off France's Mayotte

MAMOUDZOU, France (AFP) - Three people were dead and 13 missing on Monday after a boat carrying illegal immigrants capsized in the Indian Ocean off the French overseas territory of Mayotte, the local prefect's office said.

Eight others survived the accident on the boat, which had departed from the Comoran island of Anjouan, about 100 kilometres from Mayotte.

The boat capsized 300 metres off the coast and the search was continuing for other potential survivors, the office said.

Mayotte is part of the Indian Ocean archipelago of the Comoros. While the three other islands chose independence from France in 1975, it opted to remain under French rule.