EMEA News
Explosives Discovered on Hull During Ship-to-Ship Fuel Transfer
A ship-to-ship fuel transfer in the Persian Gulf today was abandoned and crew evacuated after a mine was discovered attached to the hull of the supplying vessel.
The fuel transfer was taking place approximately 28 nautical miles off Iraq’s coast, according to multiple reports including Iraqi military, with Dynacom Tankers-owned Suezmax M/T Pola said to be discharging her cargo at the time.
The receiving vessel was Nordic American Tankers's Nordic Freedom.
Dynacom, who also confirmed the incident in a statement, initially reporting discovering a "suspicious object" at approximately 0500 hours UTC. Authorities later determined it to be a limpet mine.
A security source told Reuters it was "a complicated marine bomb with sensors that could cause a sudden explosion."
“Our team has not dealt with such mines before and we asked for further assistance from a more professional bombs team," they added.
