Athens, March 13 : Five people were rescued from a remote part of Farmakonisi island after a boat carrying refugees and migrants sank in the Aegean Sea, the Hellenic Coast Guard said.

An operation was underway to locate more survivors amid bad weather conditions with winds blowing up to seven on the Beaufort scale, according to a statement on Saturday.

The five people, whose nationalities were not identified yet, told Greek authorities that they were on board a boat departing from Turkish coast but sinking in Turkish waters, Xinhua news agency reported.

They also said a total of 31 persons were on board when the incident occurred.

The dead bodies of five persons have been retrieved and 11 people have been rescued by Turkish authorities, the Hellenic Coast Guard said.