UAE coast guard evacuates 24 people from oil tanker following crash east of Strait of Hormuz

Oil tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz, December 21, 2018. (Reuters)
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  • Emirati coastguard deployed search and rescue boats to the site, 24 nautical miles off the country's coast
  • The crew was evacuated to the port of Khor Fakkan

DUBAI: The UAE Coastguard has evacuated  24 crew members from an oil tanker Tuesday after a collision between two ships near the Strait of Hormuz.

“The Coastguard of the National Guard carried out today, Tuesday, an evacuation mission involving 24 crew members of the oil tanker ADALYNN, following a collision between two ships in the Sea of Oman,” read a statement on WAM News Agency.

The statement said the Emirati coastguard deployed search and rescue boats to the site, 24 nautical miles off the country's coast, and that the crew was evacuated to the port of Khor Fakkan.

British maritime security firm Ambrey had earlier said that the incident was not security-related, as the days-long conflict between Israel and Iran, which is just across the Strait of Hormuz from neighboring Oman, continued to unfold.

The strait is the strategic maritime entryway to the Arabian Gulf and sees about a fifth of the world’s oil pass through it, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

 

(with AP)