A vessel carrying 750 tonnes of diesel from Egypt to Malta, on Saturday, sank in the Gulf of Gabes off the southeast coast of Tunisia.
In a report on Saturday morning, a spokesman for a local court, Mohamed Karray said the ship sank in the early hours of the day.
“The ship sank this morning in Tunisian territorial waters. For the moment, there is no leak. But a disaster prevention committee will meet to decide on the measures to be taken,” Karray said.
Tunisian authorities confirmed in a statement that the ship risks leaking and creating an “environmental disaster”.
Before the merchant ship known as ‘The Xelo’ sank, it had reportedly requested entry to Tunisian waters on Friday evening due to bad weather, the environment ministry said in a statement.
“The Equatorial Guinea-flagged ship, headed from the Egyptian port of Damietta to Malta, began taking water about 7km (4 miles) offshore in the Gulf of Gabes and the engine room was engulfed,” the ministry said.
“Tunisian authorities had earlier evacuated the seven-member crew from the ship, which risks leaking, while the defence, interior, transport and customs ministries were working to avoid a marine environmental disaster in the region and limit its impact.
“The ship’s situation is alarming and urgent national intervention plan have been put in place to avoid a disaster,” the ministry said.