Oil Tanker Catches Fire While Refueling Another Oil Storage Vessel, 8 Dead & 1 Missing

A fire broke out on an oil tanker in southern Myanmar’s Taninthayi Region on October 15, 2024, killing eight people, injuring three others, and leaving one missing, per authorities.

The fire started on October 14 at 4:34 p.m. local time while the oil tanker was refuelling another oil storage vessel at a port in Dawei Township.

Per the local fire service department, the fire began when the vessels were transferring fuel and burned for over 16 hours before being fully extinguished early on Tuesday morning.

Firefighters, local rescue teams, security personnel, and residents worked tirelessly to control the fire, which re-ignited at one point due to the fuel load on the vessel.

Officials confirmed that the fire was completely extinguished at 8:33 a.m. on Tuesday. Seven males and one woman were the victims, while two men and one woman were injured.

A male crew member is still missing. The injured survivors were immediately taken to Dawei Public Hospital for medical treatment.

An official from the Dawei Fire Service Department said that efforts to extinguish the fire were made difficult by the vessel’s massive amount of fuel, which included around 50,000 litres of diesel and gasoline.

According to a source familiar with the situation, the fire started when refueling an oil storage tank roughly 9 feet high, 240 feet long, and 24 feet wide. The loss of fuel greatly increased the intensity of the fire, which took several hours to extinguish.

The local authorities and fire department are conducting further investigations to determine the exact cause of the incident.

Reference: Xinhua, The Star

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Oil Tanker Catches Fire While Refueling Another Oil Storage Vessel, 8 Dead & 1 Missing