Malaysia mentioned it intercepted a big oil tanker that collided with one other ship, fled the scene and turned off its monitoring system.
The coast guard mentioned it had situated and seized the Sao Tome and Principe-flagged Ceres I, in addition to two tugboats that have been towing the vessel off the nation’s east coast.
The ship collided with the Singapore-flagged Hafnia Nile on Friday, inflicting each vessels to catch hearth.
Singaporean officers mentioned all crew members on each ships had been rescued.
The Malaysian Coast Guard mentioned the Ceres 1 left the scene instantly after the collision, which sparked a fireplace and injured not less than two crew members.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) mentioned the incident occurred about 55 kilometers northeast of Pedra Branca in Singapore.
Malaysian Coast Guard search and rescue staff chief Zin Azman Mohammad Yunus didn’t clarify why the Sao Tome and Principe-flagged tanker tried to flee, however added that additional investigations could be carried out.
Singaporean authorities mentioned that about 40 crew members have been rescued from the burning ship, and about 26 of them remained on the Ceres 1 to battle the hearth.
The Singapore-flagged Hafnia Nile was reportedly carrying naphtha, a extremely flammable oil.
The reason for the collision stays unclear. Singapore’s maritime authority mentioned ship visitors on the busy waterway had not been affected.
Nevertheless, Malaysian Coast Guard officers found an oil spill masking roughly 17 sq. kilometers.
Ceres I is a big crude oil transport supertanker. Some stories mentioned it could be a part of a so-called “darkish fleet” transporting oil from sanctioned nations.
Market intelligence service S&P World Marine Commodities mentioned the vessel, operated by China’s Shanghai Prosperity Ship Administration Co., had beforehand carried Iranian crude oil topic to U.S. sanctions.
