An Iranian oil tanker on fire off the coast of China could explode or sink, warned Monday authorities found one of the 32 missing bodies of the crew.
The tanker Sanchi, with 136,000 tons of condensed light hydrocarbons, has been on fire since Saturday night after a collision with a Chinese freighter, AFP reported.
The rescue services try to help the crew, composed of 30 Iranians and two Bangladeshi. The toxic smoke prevented the rescue operation so far, said the Chinese Ministry of Transport.
The Panamanian pavilion tanker, 274 meters long, "may explode or capsize," according to the same source.
A spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Lu Kang, announced on Monday that they had found a first body that has not been identified for the time being.
"The conditions are not very conducive to search and rescue operations," he said at a regular press conference.
"We are studying how to avoid another catastrophe," he said, referring to the spill of hydrocarbons in the sea.
The accident occurred 300 kilometers east of the mouth of the Yangtze River, near Shanghai, in eastern China.
The tanker was heading towards South Korea. It belongs to the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC), which manages Iran's oil tanker fleet, the Iranian Oil Ministry said.
The ministry added that the shipment includes products destined for the South Korean firm Hanwha Total (co-company of French Total and South Korean conglomerate Hanwha). The ship and its cargo are insured, Iranian authorities said
