Indonesia – 7 Killed, At least 22 Injured In Oil Tanker Fire

7 people killed and At least 22 people were injured when a crude oil tanker burst into flames at one of Indonesia’s busiest ports on Monday (May 11) with specially trained Marine Fire & Rescue scrambling to reach dozens trapped on board, an official said.

Two explosions were heard shortly before the blaze erupted on the 250m-long Jag Leela, belching huge clouds of thick black smoke into the air.

Firefighters on board another boat battled to put out the inferno on the Indonesia flagged vessel that was docked for repairs at North Sumatra’s Belawan port.

Emergency personnel rushed 22 injured sailors to hospital with dozens more still trapped on the tanker, said local Police Chief Dayan.

The cause of the explosion has yet to be determined, he said.

Due to the intensity of the fire and the difficulty of the firefighting operation the blaze spread to at least one other vessel docked beside the oil tanker and the force of the explosion’s caused minor damage to nearby homes, Dayan added.

The fire is expected to take time to extinguish due to the cargo that is and the difficulty with close proximity Firefighting required for extinguishing the flames, it was reported.