Fire vessel sinks

The X-Press Pearl container ship is currently sinking near the Port of Colombo.

“Although several agencies and institutions, including the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), made immense efforts to rescue the ship, it was severely affected by the weather conditions prevailed at the time,” said the SLPA on 3 June.

Cargo can’t be saved

X-Press Feeders, operators of the Singapore-flagged X-Press Pearl provided an update on the sinking on the vessel on 3 June. “The ships aft portion is sitting on the seabed at a depth of about 21 meters, and the forward section continues to settle down slowly.”

There are no signs of debris and no reports of oil pollution, said X-Press Feeders, although Smit Salvage remain at the scene to handle any possible debris, supported by the Sri Lankan Navy and the Indian Coast Guard.

Oil Spill Response Limited has been appointed to respond to any possible spill and is liaising with ITOPF, who will provide technical expertise.

Early estimates are that most of the cargo has been incinerated during the fire.

Ashore, contractors continue working with local authorities on shoreline clean up efforts to safely dispose of any debris that is washed up.

The vessel was only built in January this year, according to X-Press Feeders’ website.