Oil tanker fire: ‘Damage could rise further if the ship explodes’

COLOMBO: Panamanian-registered oil tanker burned out of control for a second day off Sri Lanka, according to news reports.

Ships, boats and aircraft from Sri Lanka and India were escalating efforts to douse the oil tanker blaze, said the reports.

Sri Lanka has begun towing the fully loaded supertanker off its east coast after it began drifting toward land, Reuters quoted the navy as saying.

Terney Pradeep, general manager of the Sri Lanka Marine Environment Protection Authority, warned of a potential damage if a leak or explosion occurred.

“The damage could rise further if the ship explodes due to the fire. If that happens, there could be a huge damage,” Terney said in a statement, cited by The Associated Press.

The fire has not spread into the tanker’s oil storage area and no leak was reported, according to Sri Lanka Navy.