Oil unloading from fire-damaged tanker Banglar Shourabh begins

Unloading of crude oil from the fire-damaged tanker MT Banglar Shourabh began today (7 October) with a smaller oil tanker.

Oil transfer to the smaller vessel with a capacity of carrying up to 5,000 tonnes of weight started at 5:00pm, according to Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC), which owns the damaged oil tanker.

"The smaller vessel will be able to unload all the oil from MT Banglar Shourabh in two-three trips. The crude oil will be later taken to the Eastern Refinery," BSC Managing Director Commodore Mahmudul Haque told The Business Standard.

Meanwhile, the government has chartered another ship – MT Global Dignity, an oil/chemical tanker registered in Panama – from abroad to transport the remaining oil in the mother vessel Omera Legacy, from which Banglar Shourabh was transporting crude oil when it caught fire.

"The chartered ship has been taken near the mother vessel and oil transportation is expected to begin tomorrow," said Mahmudul.

On 5 October, Banglar Shourabh caught fire near the outer anchorage of the Chattogram port while carrying 11,600 tonnes of crude oil and 48 individuals, including 42 crew members.

Among the crew members, a steward named Sadek Mia from Noakhali died after sustaining injuries during the fire.

It took four hours for the Coast Guard, the navy and the port authority to control the blaze.

A total of 47 employees of the ship were rescued unharmed. Among them, one crew was rescued after he jumped into the sea to save himself.

Earlier, three people died when fire engulfed MV Banglar Jyoti, another ship of BSC, at Chattogram port on 30 September.