At least 13 women have died after the crowded migrant boat they were travelling in capsized in heavy weather off the coast of Lampedusa, Italian authorities say.

Coffins were lined up on the quay of the island’s small port as a coastguard ship entered the harbour on Monday, bringing the bodies to shore.

They had drowned after their boat, laden with men, women and children, overturned just as rescue boats approached.

Rescuers managed to pick up 22 survivors out of the waters off the Italian island, south of Sicily.

However, there are fears many other people died in the accident – the latest in a long line of sea disasters to hit migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean and reach Europe.

Migrants stranded on Greek island Show all 11 1 /11 Migrants stranded on Greek island Migrants stranded on Greek island Afghan Abdul Samad travelled to Greece on a dinghy Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island A refugee carries his lunch provided by the Greek authorities Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island A Syrian family sits around a bonfire at a makeshift camp Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island The Moria camp for refugees and migrants on the island of Lesbos Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island Iraqi refugee Shahed Naji, 22, who arrived in Moria five months ago Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island Tombstones for refugees and migrants near the village of Kato Tritos Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island Arebi, a Syrian refugee, at the makeshift camp next to the Moria camp Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island A migrant makes his way to the makeshift camp next to Moria Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island A girl walks next to a self-made shower Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island Refugees and migrants line up to receive their lunch provided by the Greek authorities Reuters Migrants stranded on Greek island Syrian refugee Muhammad, 42, fishes in the city of Mytilene Reuters

One of the survivors said she had lost her sister and eight-month-old niece in the tragedy.

The ship, which had set sail from Tunisia, had been carrying around 50 people, almost all from Tunisia and west Africa, the UN migration agency said.

Italian coastguards received an alert late on Sunday that a boat was in difficulty. Two rescue vessels found the ship, which was already beginning to tip, just after midnight about six nautical miles from the coast of Lampedusa.

“In order to proceed with the transfer operation, the naval units approached the small boat, but the adverse weather conditions and the sudden movement of migrants caused the vessel to overturn,” the coastguard said in a statement.

Italian magistrates have opened an investigation into the disaster, with a magistrate from Sicily flying to Lampedusa on Monday to lead the probe.

Twenty-two people were saved from the water after the over laden boat capsized near the Italian island's coast (AP)

Charlie Yaxley, a spokesperson for the UN refugee agency, the UNHCR, said more than 1,000 people had died in the Mediterranean so far this year, most trying to cross from lawless Libya to Europe.

“This highlights once again that urgent action is needed to address the situation in the Mediterranean,” he said.

The Italian interior ministry says some 7,939 migrants have reached Italy by boat so far this year, down 63 per cent on the same period in 2018 and 93 per cent on 2017 levels.

Italy has introduced tough laws over the past year to dissuade charity rescue ships from operating in the Mediterranean in an effort to cut back on the number of possible asylum-seekers reaching the country.

The government has also urged both Tunisia and Libya to do more to prevent migrant boats from setting sail.

Over the past 18 months, the largest number of migrants entering Italy have come from Tunisia, a change from previous years when the new arrivals came mainly from sub-Saharan Africa.

The coffins with the bodies of migrants boat accident victims lined up on the quay in the port of Lampedusa the morning they were pulled from the water (EPA)

Between 1 January, and 7 October, the interior ministry said 2,232 Tunisians had reached Italy by boat.

The next largest group by nationality were Pakistanis, with 997 making the crossing, followed by migrants from the Ivory Coast, who totalled 867.