LPG tanker still burning, fire on mother vessel under control: CPA secretary

A fire broke out at an LPG tanker and its mother vessel at Kutubdia anchorage in Chattogram early today.
Md Omor Faruk, secretary of Chittagong Port Authority (CPA), said in the morning that fire on the mother vessel “Captain Nikolas” was brought under control before 3:00am.
But the blaze of “Sophia”, the tanker, could not be brought under control till now (10:45am), he said, adding, “It is still burning.”
The fire on the Sophia could not be doused due to presence of gas in the rear of the tanker, the CPA secretary said

Soon after the fire, Zonal Commander of Bangladesh Coast Guard East Zone Captain Jahirul Hoque confirmed that a fire broke out at the tanker B-LPG Sophia, rented by Bashundhara Group, and mother vessel, Captain Nikolas.
Sophia was engaged in ship-to-ship transfer of LPG from Captain Nikolas at the Kutubdia anchorage after midnight.
All 18 crewmen, two mooring men, three watchmen from the tanker, and eight port security guards from the mother vessel who jumped into the sea after the fire broke out, were rescued by a tugboat, Tufan Express, he said.
The crew comprises of nine Bangladeshis, eight Indonesians, and one Indian.
The CPA’s three tugboats “Kandari-3”, “Kandari-4” and “Kandari-10”, which is equipped to throw water, Bangladesh Coast Guard’s fire firing tug boat “Promotto” and some firefighting units of Bangladesh Navy are jointly fighting the blaze, CPA Secretary Omor Faruk said.
An officer of CPA’s Marin Department, seeking anonymity, said today the firefighters have brought the fire under control several times but it re-ignited.
It cannot be doused completely until the gas prevailing there is burnt out, he said
B-LPG Sophia is a medium sized LPG tanker engaged in lightering LPG from mother tankers in the sea.
Captain Nikolas is one of the two vessels that anchored in Chattogram port last week to unload about 70,000 tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas by misreporting the country of origin of the product, according to the LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh (LOAB).