At least seven people are reported injured, while three are said to be in critical condition after an oil tanker caught fire in Gadani ship-breaking yard on Sunday, October 14, local media reported.
The fire erupted while the workers were cutting steel inside the beached ship. The injured workers were transferred to Karachi for medical treatment.
As World Maritime News understands this is the second incident in a week as another tanker caught fire on October 11 at Gadani shipbreaking yard. However, no injuries were reported.
The suspected cause of the fire is that the ships were not properly cleaned from residual oil.
The latest fire is being reported just as Gadani reopened to receive tankers.
The demolition of tankers and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers at Pakistan’s Gadani shipbreaking yards was banned in February 2017, following two incidents which caused dozens of fatalities.
The incidents, caused by the absence of safety measures, included an explosion on November 1, which killed at least 28 workers, and a fire on January 9, which claimed the lives of another 5 workers.
#Gadani : An oil tanker cough fire in a cargo ship this morning at Plot no. 10 at Gadani Ship breaking yard #Balochistan . 7 workers was injured, shifted to #Karachi .
In year 2016, 29 was killed, many injured while dismantling an oil tanker. pic.twitter.com/w9eZvIl0jD
— SherY – (@SherySyed_) October 14, 2018
World Maritime News Staff