Assimi; Oman

Oman | 1983-Jan-07

Initial Notification: On January 7, 1983, a fire broke out in the engine room of the tanker Assimi. The crew abandoned ship and the Assimi was taken under tow by the tug Solano. On January 10, an explosion occurred aboard the vessel and it burned fiercely for several days as it was towed into the Arabian Sea. The tanker was towed to a point 200 miles off the coast of Oman where it sank on January 16. A second explosion occurred as the vessel was sinking which ignited the oil on the surface of the water. A slick formed above the area where the vessel sank. There was no coastal pollution resulting from the incident. Keyword: International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Ltd. (ITOPF), fire, explosion, sinking..