A boat carrying 69 asylum seekers is believed to have arrived undetected at the Cocos Islands. <\/p>\n
Local resident Jack O'Donnell, who has a beachfront house, says he spotted the boat just after 8:00 am local time, about 200 metres offshore. <\/p>\n
He says four men on board then swam ashore. <\/p>\n
\"About 10 minutes later four of the refugees, they're Tamils, swam with life jackets through the surf,\" he said. <\/p>\n
Mr O'Donnell says one man, who spoke broken English, said there were 69 people on board who were exhausted and in need of food. <\/p>\n
\"It was obviously crowded with bodies,\" he said. <\/p>\n
\"We were just worried that they might try and traverse the surf which would be dangerous, well, it would be catastrophic because it's jagged reef.\" <\/p>\n
Mr O'Donnell says he alerted police who showed up and spoke to the four men. <\/p>\n
It is understood the boat has been towed to the island's lagoon. <\/p>\n
Customs has not been able to confirm any details. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
More:<\/p>\n
Asylum seekers swim ashore at Cocos Islands<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A boat carrying 69 asylum seekers is believed to have arrived undetected at the Cocos Islands. Local resident Jack O'Donnell, who has a beachfront house, says he spotted the boat just after 8:00 am local time, about 200 metres offshore. Continue reading