'Nobody seems to be steering these ships, many lives could be lost'

The Italian coast guard says a merchant ship with at least 400 migrants on board is heading for the Italian coast.

The Ezadeen, sailing under the flag of Sierra Leone, has no crew on board and has lost power in rough seas off the south-east of Italy.

William Spindler, from the UN's refugee agency the UNHCR, told Today's Sarah Montague: "We are aware of at least four incidents in the last month where people smugglers cram hundreds of migrants and refugees in big cargo boats and then send them in the direction of Italy."

"This is very worrying as people are risking their lives and the smugglers have no regard for their lives, they are just out to get as much money as possible."

First broadcast Today programme 2 January 2015.