Winds and bad weather hamper burning ferry rescue off Greece - in pictures

Rescuers battled in the dark to save hundreds of passengers still trapped on a burning Italian ferry adrift off Albania in the early hours of December 29, as coastguards reported one man had died in the high-seas drama. Filippo Monteforte / AFP

Italian Red Cross operators prepare the camp to accomodate the passengers of the “Norman Atlantic” ferry at port of Brindisi, southern Italy, during the night of December 29. Carlo Hermann / AFP

In this photo taken from a nearby ship, vessels try to extinguish the fire at the Italian-flagged “Norman Atlantic” after it caught fire in the Adriatic Sea. Italian and Greek military and coast guard rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves Sunday as they struggled to rescue hundreds of people trapped on a burning ferry adrift between Italy and Albania. At least one person died and two were injured. AP Photo / SKAI TV Station

Passengers evacuated from the burning ferry “Norman Atlantic” arrive aboard the Singapore-flagged cargo container ship “Siprit of Piraeus” to the harbor of Bari. Filippo Monteforte / AFP

Desperate passengers pleaded by mobile phone live on TV to be saved from a burning ferry adrift off Albania as rescuers battled gale-force winds and billowing smoke to get to them. AFP Photo / Ho / Marina Militare

Rescue operations evacuating some of the passengers from the “Norman Atlantic” ferry on a Capitaneria di Porto patrol boat in the harbour of Otranto, Italy. The fire started in the ship’s car deck and spread through the ship. The ferry departed from Greece en route to the Italian port of Ancona. Biagio Claudio Longo / EPA

A person is lifted on an Italian Navy helicopter as the ferry “Norman Atlantic” burns in waters off Greece in this handout video grab of the Italian Marina Militare. Italian and Greek helicopter crews prepared to work through the night to airlift passengers in pairs off a burning ferry adrift in the Adriatic Sea, battling darkness and bad weather that hampered rescue efforts by other ships throughout Sunday. Marina Militare / Handout via Reuters

An injured passenger arrives at the Antonio Perrino hospital in Brindisi, southern Italy, rescued from the burning ferry “Norman Atlantic” adrift off the coast of Albania. Renato Esposito / AFP

A cargo ship with 49 people evacuated from a Greek ferry that caught fire in the Adriatic Sea arrived in the Italian port of Bari on Monday, the first big group to reach land. More than 160 people remained trapped on the smoke-filled vessel adrift in rough seas between Italy and Albania.

One person was killed in the risky rescue operation and two others were injured as Italian and Greek rescue ships and helicopters plucked passengers off the stricken vessel and brought them to safety aboard the 10 or so mercantile ships nearby. Those evacuees were to be brought to shore later after the rescue was completed, Greek officials said.

The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, carrying 422 passengers and 56 crew members. All day and night, passengers huddled on the vessel’s upper decks, pelted by rain and hail and struggling to breathe through the thick smoke.