(ANSA-AFP) - ATHENS, OCT 6 - At least 17 people died and nearly 30 were still missing after high winds sank two migrant vessels in Greece, the coastguard said Thursday, with some survivors dramatically hoisted to safety by crane. A dinghy believed to be carrying around 40 people sank east of the island of Lesbos in high winds, coastguard spokesman Nikos Kokkalas told state TV ERT, adding that the people are of apparent African origin. The bodies of 16 women and a young boy have been recovered from the area so far, the coastguard said. A few hours earlier, the coastguard was alerted to a sailboat in distress near the island of Kythira, south of the Peloponnese peninsula.

The sailboat believed to be carrying around 95 people ran aground and sank near the island port of Diakofti. (ANSA-AFP).