Monday, January 15, 2007
3 people hurt in oil tanker explosion in Manila
MANILA (1:45 p.m.) -- A blast shook an empty oil tanker moored in Manila as crewmen cleaned a tank on Monday, injuring at least three people, coast guard officials said.
The explosion triggered a fire that was quickly put out, said Commander Charlie Rances, a coast guard operations officer.
"The tanker was already empty and they were just cleaning remnants of oil so we need to find out if someone smoked or what it was that caused the explosion," Rances added.
He said the tanker - with 497 gross tonnage - was on the shanty-lined Pasig River when the explosion occurred.
Two of four crewmen cleaning the tank were among three people brought to a hospital, Rances said. Manila's radio dzMM said a woman was also injured in the blast that blew off one of the oil tanks' metal lid. (AP) |
