Sri Lanka Faces An Environmental Disaster As A Ship Full Of Chemicals Starts Sinking
Wednesday, June 2, 2021
Smoke billows from the Singapore-registered container ship X-Press Pearl on Wednesday. The ship carries 81 dangerous goods containers, including 25 tons of nitric acid, some of which has already leaked.
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP via Getty Images
A cargo ship carrying chemicals and plastic pellets has been burning off the coast of Sri Lanka for nearly two weeks. Now, efforts to tow the ship to deeper waters have failed – and the boat sinking looks increasingly likely.
The ship, the X-Press Pearl, was carrying 1,486 containers. Eighty-one of those were dangerous goods containers, including 25 tons of nitric acid. At least one container has leaked nitric acid.
The MV X-Press Pearl, left, is seen pulled by other navel vessels at Kapungoda, where it is anchored off Colombo port on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, June 2, 2021. Photo by: Associated Press/Eranga Jayawardena
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) Salvage experts failed to tow a fire-stricken container ship carrying chemicals out to sea and it started to sink Wednesday off Sri Lanka s main port, raising fears of a marine environmental disaster, officials said.
X-Press Feeders, operators of the container ship MV X-Press Pearl, said the experts were able to board the vessel and attach a tow line, but “efforts to move the ship to deeper waters have failed.”
Salvage experts failed to tow a fire-stricken container ship carrying chemicals out to sea and it started to sink Wednesday off Sri Lanka's main port, raising fears of a marine environmental disaster, officials said.
Beaches are coated with plastic pellets, and a container full of nitric acid has leaked. Sri Lankan authorities are now making preparations for an oil spill.