A passenger boat with some 270 people on board has capsized off northern Cyprus, with a search and rescue under way, local media report.

Murat Senkul, the mayor of the coastal town of Kyrenia, told broadcaster CNN Turk that 159 of those aboard had been reached.

“The situation is very serious,” he said.

The vessel reportedly began taking on water about four miles off the shore. Local television has broadcast images of the upside-down ferry in the water, with people wearing life vests atop its hull.

Helicopters and coastguard boats have been dispatched to the scene, while ambulances have been stationed on the beach.

The transport minister of the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Erhan Arikli, said 100 passengers had been taken to shore.

The TRNC, which is recognised only by Turkey, controls the northern third of the island of Cyprus, which has been divided since 1974.

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