Divers who on Sunday inspected the hull of a tanker loaded with 750 tonnes of fuel that sank off southeast Tunisia detected no leaks, officials said.
The Equatorial Guinea-flagged Xelo, which on Saturday sank in the Gulf of Gabes, has settled on its side at a depth of about 20m, the Tunisian Ministry of Environment said.
“No leak has been detected,” it said in a statement.
Photo: AFP / Handout / Tunisian Ministry of Defense
The inspection was carried out by divers accompanied by the ship’s captain and engineer, said Mohamed Karray, spokesman for a court in Gabes city that is investigating the sinking.
The Xelo was traveling from Egypt to Malta when it went down.
With the scene sealed off by the Tunisian military, the Tunisian Ministry of Defense released pictures showing the vessel submerged on its side.
The crew of the Xelo had on Friday evening issued a distress call and sought shelter in Tunisian waters from bad weather before going down.
Tunisian authorities rescued the seven-member crew, who received first aid and were moved to a hotel.
Tunisian Minister of Transport Rabie al-Majidi on Sunday said that rescue workers had checked during the operation that the valves were closed, and the team of divers had ensured that the valves were sealed and intact.
“The situation is not dangerous, the outlook is positive, the ship is stable because luckily it ran aground on sand,” he told reporters.
The minister said the priority was to pump the diesel fuel and prevent any spillage or pollution.
An Italian ship for cleaning up marine pollution is to be sent along with a dive team to aid with efforts, an Italian official said.
As a precaution, protective booms have been placed around the wreck.
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