Malaysia coast guard says tanker involved in fire has left site

Malaysia coast guard says tanker involved in fire has left site

World

Malaysia coast guard says tanker involved in fire has left site

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 KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia's coast guard said on Saturday that one of the two large oil tankers involved in a collision that led to fires on both had left the location of the accident and was believed to have turned off its tracking system.

The coast guard said it was tracking the whereabouts of the Sao Tome and Principe-flagged tanker Ceres I, which was suspected to be within Malaysian waters.

The Ceres I was involved in a collision reported early on Friday with the Singapore-flagged Hafnia Nile about 55 km (35 miles) northeast of the Singaporean island of Pedra Branca, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said on Friday.

The 40 crew on the Ceres I were all accounted for, the MPA had said, adding that 14 had been evacuated by a Singapore Air Force helicopter while 26 were conducting fire-fighting operations onboard.

The Chinese owner of the Ceres I could not be reached for comment.

All 22 crew aboard the Hafnia were evacuated and arrived in Singapore, its operator said on Friday.

Hafnia, the operator of Hafnia Nile, said on Friday a tug was on scene to assist the ship, with specialised tugs en route to join firefighting efforts.