Home / World News / Tanker loaded with 2 million barrels of oil catches fire off Sri Lanka

Tanker loaded with 2 million barrels of oil catches fire off Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Navy deployed two vessels for rescue operation, Indian Coast Guard diverted three ships and an aircraft, while clean tanker Helen M has also been pressed into assistance

There was an explosion onboard Oil Tanker MT New Diamond 37 NM off Sri Lanka coast | Credits: @IndiaCoastGuard

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New Diamond is about 65 kilometers (40 miles) off the east coast of Sri Lanka, according to ship-tracking data | Credits: @IndiaCoastGuard

Debjit Chakraborty, Anusha Ondaatjie and Dhwani Pandya | Bloomberg

2 min read Last Updated : Sep 03 2020 | 6:55 PM IST

An oil tanker loaded with two million barrels of Kuwati crude sailing toward Odisha's Paradip refinery caught fire Thursday morning off Sri Lanka’s coast, raising concerns about an oil spill.

The fire in the engine room of New Diamond, a very large crude carrier, was caused by an explosion, said Sri Lanka Navy spokesman Indika de Silva. “Fire is still in the engine room and hasn’t spread out.”

Sri Lanka Navy deployed two vessels for rescue operation, Indian Coast Guard diverted three ships and an aircraft, while clean tanker Helen M has also been pressed into assistance.

Topics : sri lanka Oil tankers

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