DOOLA NO.3

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Gas residues may have caused deadly explosion

Gas residues are likely to have caused an oil tank installed on the deck of the "Doola No. 3” to explode during cleaning work in waters six kilometers northwest of Jawol Island, Ongjin County, off Incheon around 8:05 a.m. on Jan 14. After the accident, the Korea Coast Guard’s Incheon headquarters and the Navy deployed 30 patrol and speed boasts and two choppers to the scene, and conducted search operations to find missing crewmen. Bunker C oil and diesel fuel amounting to 126 tons in the vessel were transferred to other vessels, and an oil boom was installed to prevent oil leaks from the vessel, which sank after splitting into two due to the explosion. The “Doola No. 3” had transported 6,500 tons of gasoline from the port of Daesan in South Chungcheong Province and unloaded the shipment at SK Pier in Incheon before departing for Daesan at around 6:30 a.m. The accident happened about 20-30 minutes after 11 crewmen hadstarted cleaning the oil tank, while the vessel was passing Jawol Island one hour after the departure from the port of Incheon. Five survivors told maritime police aboard a patrol boat from the Incheon headquarters that the oil tanker exploded with a bang and that the vessel shook severely. The explosion was so powerful that the glass inside the pilothouse was shattered. The survivors survived because they were working at the wheelhouse, or staying in the engine room or cabins. But the others fell into the sea or were killed being squeezed into facilities due to the explosion, as they were working at the tank or staying on deck to assist cleaning. In the wake of the tank’s explosion, the bow of the vessel was hoisted and caused the ship to split into two. The captain mistakenly thought that North Korea had resumed shelling on Yeonpyeong Island. After the accident Doola Shipping admitted that the accident seemed to have occurred in the course of gas free work meant to release gas (vaporized fuel) left in the oil tank. The “Doola No. 3” carried diesel fuel in ordinary times but carried gasoline this time, and it was part of the investigation if the accident was related to this and the possibility that the accident occurred as crewmen were trying to remove a mixture of residue of diesel fuel, which was carried in ordinary times, and gas remaining in the tank. The Korea Coast Guard also blamed this reason for causing the explosion. Considering that the oil tank completely disappeared and the vessel was split into two, a large volume of combustible materials such as highly explosive gasoline residue or gas is believed to have remained in the tank to cause the explosion. Maritime police was also investigating if the crew failed to follow safety rules while cleaning the tank. Under law, the owner of a vessel carrying dangerous freight, namely liquid cargo, must deploy crewmen licensed to handle dangerous materials or who have had training.

Tanker broken after explosion

Off the coast of South Korea the "Doola No. 3" broke in two and partially sank after an explosion 32 km southwest of Incheon on Jan 14, 2012. Five men died in the accident, a further five were still missing. On board were 11 South Koreans and 5 crew from Birma. The ship was unloaded, but had 80 tons heavy fuel and 40 tons diesel aboard. The explosion occurred while gas was drained out following unloading of a cargo of oil. Reports with photos: http://www.20min.ch/news/kreuz_und_quer/story/-ltanker-nach-Explosion-gesunken-13300001 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16565208 http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/15/south-korea-ship-explosion http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2012/01/15/3/0302000000AEN20120115003100315F.HTML