PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – A government official in Haiti says that at least five people are dead after their flimsy sailboat capsized off the Caribbean nation’s far western coast.

Silvera Guillaume of Haiti’s Civil Protection Office said Friday that the vessel capsized around 5 p.m. Wednesday when it encountered strong waves.

The boat was travelling from the remote coastal town of Tiburon to the nearby Les Irois, also on the coast, and may have been overcrowded with passengers. A rescue effort found 11 survivors.

Survivors say between 20 and 28 passengers were aboard the craft.

Many people travel and transport goods by boat from the seaside villages which are located in a mountainous region where roads are barely passable.