Four Crewmembers Injured in Fire as Bulker Departs Mozambique
[Brief] The maritime authorities in Mozambique report that four crewmembers required treatment at a local clinic after a fire broke out on their vessel as they were departing a northern port on the Indian Ocean. The crewmembers, whose nationality was not specified, are reported to be out of danger while their vessel is being detained pending further inspections.
The Maritime Transport Regulatory Authority (ITANSMAR) told the local media that the fire began on the bulker Altzek on Sunday afternoon, April 13. The vessel was reportedly loaded with coal and departing the Nacala port.
“It is assumed that there was an explosion in the engine room [of the ship], a fact that has yet to be ascertained,” Itransmar said in a statement sent to the news outlet Lusa. “The four crew members (…) are out of danger and are currently undergoing treatment at a clinic in Nacala,” the newspaper reports.
Four tugboats with fire-fighting equipment were sent to aid the 81,177 dwt bulker which is registered in Nigeria, but the fire had already been extinguished by the ship’s crew. After loading the ship was bound according to its AIS signal for a stop in Las Palmas, Spain with a final destination of Poland.
The ship according to the Equasis database had recently been acquired from South Korea by the Green Seeds General Trading Company of Oman. It was built in 2012.
The ship is showing that it is not under command while lying in the Nacala Porto anchorage. ITRANSMAR said a delegation of naval engineers would be sent to inspect the vessel. They are inspecting to determine if it can continue on its trip.