A chemical tanker has sunk off the Chinese coast in the eastern province of Zhejiang after an explosion which killed two people.
The tanker, loaded with 120 tonnes of carbon dioxide, sank immediately after the explosion at a dock in Tangqi Township, Yuhang District in the provincial capital of Hangzhou, said the Hangzhou Municipal Fire Control Brigade.
According to a Brigade spokesman, “two sailors aboard the ship died at the scene, and four people on nearby ships and on the dock were injured.”
Local maritime affairs authorities are investigating the cause of the explosion which took place at a dedicated dock for a chemical factory in Tangqi Township, said the Xinhua news agency.
The explosion reportedly tilted three other tankers, one of which was carrying 250 tonnes of concentrated sulphuric acid while the other two carried hydrogen peroxide.
According to Lloyd's List, some of these chemicals are leaking from their tanks and are contaminating the lower reaches of the Grand Canal, along which the dedicated dock is located.
It is not known if any bunker fuel is leaking from the sunken tanker.
Residents living nearby have been warned not to drink or use the canal's waters.
The tanker, loaded with 120 tonnes of carbon dioxide, sank immediately after the explosion at a dock in Tangqi Township, Yuhang District in the provincial capital of Hangzhou, said the Hangzhou Municipal Fire Control Brigade.
According to a Brigade spokesman, “two sailors aboard the ship died at the scene, and four people on nearby ships and on the dock were injured.”
Local maritime affairs authorities are investigating the cause of the explosion which took place at a dedicated dock for a chemical factory in Tangqi Township, said the Xinhua news agency.
The explosion reportedly tilted three other tankers, one of which was carrying 250 tonnes of concentrated sulphuric acid while the other two carried hydrogen peroxide.
According to Lloyd's List, some of these chemicals are leaking from their tanks and are contaminating the lower reaches of the Grand Canal, along which the dedicated dock is located.
It is not known if any bunker fuel is leaking from the sunken tanker.
Residents living nearby have been warned not to drink or use the canal's waters.