Sri Lanka has begun to towing the burning oil tanker “New Diamond” away from the coast of the island nation. The damaged ship, which broke out yesterday, threatened to drift towards the coast. As the Sri Lankan government announced, the burning oil tanker is currently about 50 kilometres off the east coast.
The “New Diamond” is considered a very large oil tanker with a loading capacity of around 300,000 tons. The ship, flying the Panamanian flag, was chartered by the Indian Oil Company and was on its way from Kuwait to the Indian port of Paradip. According to the data, the ship has more than two million barrels of crude oil on board and large quantities of diesel fuel.
The rear part of the tanker is engulfed in flames, with clouds of black smoke rising above it, according to footage seen by the Reuters news agency. Firefighting work resumed in the morning after being cancelled Thursday night due to poor visibility and strong winds.
It is unclear whether oil has already leaked. There is still no sign of this, the Sri Lankan government’s website said. According to media reports, oil has been spilling into the sea since Thursday evening.
Environmentalists fear dire consequences
A few weeks after the accident of an oil tanker off Mauritius, the next environmental disaster in the Indian Ocean is looming. According to the environmental organisation Greenpeace, there are whale and reef sharks off the coast of Sri Lanka, as well as sea turtles and blue and sperm whales.
If the “New Diamond” loses its cargo, this would have dire consequences, said Pradeep Kumara, the head of the Sri Lankan Environment Agency: “There is a risk of enormous damage, especially for the northern coast of Sri Lanka, but also for the eastern and southern part of the coast. The ship has loaded more than 260,000 tons of oil and also large amounts of diesel fuel. And if the ship explodes as a result of the fire, it can all get much worse.”
Apparently a dead man
Twenty-two of the 23 members of the ship’s crew, including apparently Filipino and Greek nationals, were rescued, according to the statement. A member of the crew apparently died in the engine room.
Mobile phone videos circulated by the Reuters news agency showed the injured being taken off board. The Sri Lankan Air Force had sent an observation aircraft and the navy had sent two ships to support the rescue efforts.
