A tanker crew was reported safe following a blast and subsequent blaze on their vessel in Bangladesh, according to TradeWinds. An explosion was reported on the 14,500-dwt handysize product carrier Banglar Jyoti (built 1987) at Patenga on the River Karnaphuli in Chattogram on Monday morning.
Video footage showed a tug spraying water on the bow of the ship, where black smoke was seen billowing near deck piping. The New Age website said the vessel was docked at the Dolphin jetty of the Eastern Refinery. The Bangladesh Coast Guard, navy and the refinery’s firefighting teams assisted the fire service in extinguishing the blaze on the Bangladesh Shipping Corp ship. One fire officer told the newspaper that eight trucks were sent to the scene.
AKM Naeemullah, deputy general manager of inspection and safety at Eastern Refinery, said all crew members had safely evacuated the vessel. The fire was not under control at that time. But Omor Faruk, secretary of the Chittagong Port Authority, later told the Daily Star: “The fire has been brought under control.”
The tanker was said to have been unloading around 11,000 tonnes of crude. No cause revealed Eyewitnesses talked of the smoke causing panic in the surrounding area. The cause of the fire was yet to be determined. As a precautionary measure, all nearby vessels were moved to safe zones. The Banglar Jyoti typically carries oil into port that it has transhipped from larger vessels out at sea. The tanker has no insurer listed by the International Group of P&I Clubs And there are no port state control inspections recorded on the Equasis website.