Oil tanker continues to burn for Day 3 after massive collision in East China Sea, 31 aboard missing

An oil tanker that crashed in the East China Sea on Saturday continues to burn for Day 3 despite much rescue efforts. A crew member was found dead yesterday, while the fate of 31 others is still unknown.

IndiaToday.in  | Edited by Shreya Biswas
New Delhi, January 9, 2018 | UPDATED 14:22 IST
Smoke and fire is seen from tanker Sanchi after it collided with a Chinese freight ship in the East China Sea. Source: ReutersSmoke and fire is seen from tanker Sanchi after it collided with a Chinese freight ship in the East China Sea. Source: Reuters

An Iranian oil-carrying tanker had a massive collision with a Chinese freight ship in the East China Sea on Saturday. Despite much rescue efforts, the oil tanker is on fire and is feared to be on the verge of explosion.

Tanker Sanchi, run by oil shipping operator National Iranian Tanker Co, collided with a CF Crystal carrying grain from the United States about 160 nautical miles off China's coast near Shanghai on Saturday night.

Right after the hit, the tanker spilled oil and burst into flames.

The Chinese government has confirmed that dozens of rescue boats are at sea trying to control the fire, as the oil tanker continues to burn for the third day.

China's Ministry of Transport said that poor weather conditions (heavy winds, rain and high waves) has been fanning the fire and hampering efforts to bring it under control.

The oil tanker had a 32-member crew aboard,  30 of whom were Iranians.

The body of one crew member was found in the water near the tanker yesterday. The fate of the remaining 31 people is unknown as of now. A flotilla of 13 search-and-rescue vessels is still looking for them in the 900-square-nautical-mile area around the oil tanker.

What is worse is, chances of the tanker exploding is increasing by the minute.

Tanker Sanchi was on its way to South Korea carrying 136,000 tonnes of an ultra-light crude oil that becomes highly volatile when exposed to air and water.

The size of the oil spill from the oil tanker and the extent of the environmental harm it caused is not known. However, it is safe to say that the disaster has the potential to be the worst since 1991, when 260,000 tonnes of oil leaked off the Angolan coast.

Chinese media has shared footage of oil tanker Sanchi puffing black clouds of smoke as rescue boats try to douse the flames.