US Navy: Mysterious Blast Aboard Oil Tanker in Straights of Hormuz
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Date Posted: 2010-07-28 15:33:13
A Japanese tanker M. Star carrying 270,000 tons of oil was reported damaged by an explosion, possibly caused by an attack, Wednesday, July 28, near the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, which passes Iran and Oman. One minor injury was caused but no oil leak. The tanker is now on its way towards Japan.
The spokesperson for the tanker's owners Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd said the suspected attack must have come from the outside. "We believe it's highly likely an attack, maybe a terrorist incident. There is nothing that could cause a spontaneous explosion in that part of the vessel."
The US Fifth Fleet spokesman in Bahrain said it was trying to get more information on the incident. Initial damage assessment from the ship's owner is that one lifeboat was blown off the ship and there is some damage to the starboard hatches," the Fifth Fleet said.
An Omani coastal guard source attributed the explosion to a low-level earthquake around Bandar Abbas on the Iranian shore of Hormuz. The Iranian seismological institute confirmed a slight 3.4 Richter magnitude tremor. The Managing Director of Iranian Navigation and Ports Organization Ataollah Sadr ruled out the possibility of terrorist attack. He too suggested the incident was caused by an earthquake or "the presence of inflammable steam and gases."
However, debkafile's military sources report that a crew member was said by the ship's owners to have seen a flash of light just before the explosion which does not match an earthquake theory.
The M Star took on crude oil Tuesday at the UAE Port of Das Island and was heading out for Chiba port in Japan when the blast occurred west of the Strait of Hormuz, the transit point for 40 percent of oil shipped worldwide. The tanker then switched course and headed for Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates to assess the damage.
Tehran has recently stepped up its threats to disrupt shipping through the chokepoint straits if attacked.
International shippers are also constantly worried by piracy, although thus far the pirates have not attacked Japanese vessels.
A Japanese tanker M. Star carrying 270,000 tons of oil was reported damaged by an explosion, possibly caused by an attack, Wednesday, July 28, near the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, which passes Iran and Oman. One minor injury was caused but no oil leak. The tanker is now on its way towards Japan.
