Sri Lanka is Bracing For Beach Pollution As Ship Burns Off Its Coast
On Thursday, three Indian vessels joined the battle to contain a huge fire on a container ship off the coast of Sri Lanka amid fears it could spew hundreds of tonnes of oil after breaking up.
The ship is called X-Press Pearl and it has been blazing for a week and it has gone out of control. The heavy winds are battering the vessel registered in Singapore and the authorities are fearing a new oil disaster on the beaches of Sri Lanka.
The ships from the Indian coast guard have joined a navy ship from Sri Lanka and also four private tugs are spraying water on the X-Press Pearl which has got 25 tonnes of nitric acid in its cargo.
A military helicopter has also been deployed to drop bags of fire retardant chemicals on Wednesday on the ship.
But the fire has weakened the vessel which is 186-meter long and it could spill oil and break up according to the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) of Sri Lanka.
Dharshani Lahandapura, the MEPA chairman has spoken to media outlets and said that the fire has already covered the length of the vessel. The hull is not at all stable for them for towing the ship away from their waters.
The vessel has been anchored outside the Colombo harbor and it is carrying 278 tonnes of bunker oil and also 50 tonnes of marine gas oil according to her.
She also said that it is believed that the fire has started in a container of nitric acid and it has rapidly spread.
The reports are investigated by the authorities and it is said that the crew knew about the nitric acid leaks before entering the waters of Sri Lanka.
It is said that if the problem was addressed at that time this crisis would not have to be dealt with.
The risk from the acid was played down by the authorities as it is neutralized by seawater.
Lahandapura also said that a large quantity of the oil could also reach the tourist and the fishing region of Negombo which is 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the capital.
The officials have also added that the military is going to be deployed to clean the Negombo beach if it is required.
The seas are very rough and the heavy monsoon winds have made it impossible to lay booms around the ship for containing the spill.
The authorities feel that the best option is to clean the beach and it is suspected that any clearing operation will take at least a few weeks and it could be months also.
Last year in September, an oil tanker has caught fire off the eastern coast of Sri Lanka after an engine room explosion that has killed a crewman.
The fire has been put out after more than a week with the help of the coastguard from India along with the oil spill.
