Spanish fishing boat sinks off Canada; at least 4 dead

A Spanish fishing boat sank off eastern Canada on Tuesday, killing at least four people, Spain's maritime rescue service said. Three crew members were rescued.

The Spanish government said that search operations were ongoing to locate other members of the 22-strong crew of the sunken vessel.

Canadian authorities have sent a helicopter and a rescue vessel to the area, which is about 450 kilometers (280 miles) off the island of Newfoundland, in eastern Canada, a spokeswoman of the Spanish rescue service said.

The spokeswoman, who wasn't authorized to be named in media reports, said that a rescue center in Madrid activated two other fishing boats in the area close to the vessel in trouble.

One of them found the three survivors and four bodies in an emergency boat, she said.