Oil tanker stranded off Tunisian coast
Highlight
- The ship sank due to seepage of water in the engine room, the environment ministry said
- only the bow of the boat was visible
- It is not clear if the ship was leaking fuel
A commercial oil tanker carrying more than 750 tonnes of diesel got stuck overnight in the Gulf of Gabes in southeastern Tunisia from Friday to Saturday.
According to the environment ministry, the ship sank on Saturday morning due to seepage of water in the engine room. Only the bow of the boat was visible. It is not clear if it is leaking fuel.
As soon as the accident was announced, the Environment Ministry announced the activation of the National Emergency Response Plan applied to the potential threat of marine pollution.
It consists of specialists, marine guards and civil defense agents who are stationed in the danger zone, and tarpaulin-like buffers are put up around the perimeter to prevent any leakage.
“Zello”, which was flying the flag of Equatorial Guinea, was on its way to Malta from the Egyptian port of Damietta, but was removed from its route due to bad weather conditions.
The crew was rescued by the Maritime Guard and Civil Protection teams.
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