ROME, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) - Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi on Sunday said Italy was fully engaged in an evacuation underway in an Italian-flagged ferry which caught fire off the island of Corfu in western Greece.

"We are following the incident of the ship between Greece and Italy, in contact with (Greek) Premier (Antonis) Samaras and with maximum involvement of the Italian navy," Renzi said in his first words posted on a social network.

The "Norman Atlantic" was sailing from the port of Patras in western Greece to Ancona in Italy with 411 passengers, 55 crew members and 222 vehicles on board, when a fire started in one of the garages under yet unclear circumstances.

After the first attempts of the crew to put the flames out failed, authorities decided to evacuate the people to ships which were sailing nearby at about 30 nautical miles off Corfu and the smaller island Othonoi, local reports said.

According to Italian Rai State television, there were some 50 Italian nationals aboard. ANSA news agency said Italy has dispatched various helicopters and vessels to take part in the rescue operations along with Greek forces amidst strong winds. Endi

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