Dubai (Reuters) – A Panama-flagged tanker called White Pearl has caught fire near Assaluyeh on Iran’s Gulf coast, Iranian state media reported on Thursday, adding that all crew members were safe.
“Twenty-two of the ship’s crew have been rescued by Iranian rescue teams after the ship’s captain requested assistance from the port authorities,” state TV quoted a local ports official as saying.
The official said that the tanker, carrying 40,000 tons of liquefied petroleum gas, had experienced “a problem in the engine room due to a fire.”
Panama’s vessel registry, the world’s largest, has withdrawn its flag from 136 ships linked to Iran’s state oil company in the last four years, the country’s maritime authority said in January.
