MUSCAT/DUBAI: Two oil tankers were hit by explosions in the international waters of the Sea of Oman on Thursday, sending world oil prices soaring.
The crews of both the two tankers were rescued. One of the two tankers carried an oil shipment and the other a petrochemical product.
One of the tankers sustained serious damage and resulted in minor injuries to one of its crew members.
The Norwegian Maritime Authority said three explosions were reported on board the Norwegian-owned tanker Front Altair after blast occurred on the Singapore-owned ship Kokuka Courageous.
Iran said its navy had rescued 44 crew members after the two vessels, which were carrying highly inflammable material, caught fire.
TV images showed huge, thick plumes of smoke and fire billowing from one of the tankers as it lay out to sea.
The US Fifth Fleet said its warships had received distress calls from both vessels in a “reported attack”.
Iranian state media said the first incident occurred on board the Front Altair at 8:50 am (0420 GMT) 25 nautical miles off Bandar-e-Jask in southern Iran.
The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker, a 111,000-tonne vessel, was carrying a cargo of ethanol from Qatar to Taiwan, official news agency IRNA reported.
“As the ship caught fire, 23 of the crew jumped into the water and were saved by a passing ship and handed over to the Iranian rescue unit,” it said.
“An hour after the first accident the second ship caught fire at 9:50 am 28 nautical miles off the port.”
“I can confirm that the vessel has NOT sunk,” Robert Hvide Macleo, chief executive for the ship’s owner Frontline, wrote in a text message to AFP. No injuries were reported.
The Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous was headed to Singapore from Saudi Arabia with a cargo of methanol, and 21 of its crew jumped and were rescued, IRNA said.
Singapore-based BSM Ship Management said it had “launched a full-scale emergency response following a security incident” involving the Kokuka Courageous which is owned by Japanese company Kokuka Sangyo Ltd.
“The 21 crew of the vessel abandoned ship after the incident on board which resulted in damage to the ship’s hull starboard side,” it said.
“One crew man from the Kokuka Courageous was slightly injured in the incident and is receiving first aid.”
It said the vessel was about 70 nautical miles from the United Arab Emirates and just 14 from the coast of Iran.
Global oil prices gained around four per cent immediately after the reports of the attack. Benchmark Brent oil was trading at $61.74 a barrel, up about three per cent.
The European Union called for “maximum restraint” to avoid an escalation in the region.
The world cannot afford a major confrontation in the Gulf, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned on Thursday, as the Security Council prepared to meet to discuss the suspected attacks.
— ONA/AFP
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