Fiery Fate: Russian Gas Tanker Explodes and Sinks in Mediterranean

A Russian LNG tanker, suspected of evading Western sanctions, exploded and sank in the Mediterranean near Libya. The Arctic Metagaz was carrying 61,000 tons of liquefied natural gas when it caught fire and sank. All 30 crew members were rescued, and no casualties were reported.

A Russian-flagged tanker laden with liquefied natural gas erupted into flames before sinking in the Mediterranean Sea off Libya, according to local authorities. There were no casualties reported in the incident, which involved the Arctic Metagaz, a vessel under Western sanctions for allegedly being part of Russia's covert energy shipping fleet circumventing penalties over the Ukraine conflict.

The cause of the explosion, reportedly followed by a massive fire, remains unidentified as detailed by the Libyan Maritime Authority. At the time of the mishap, the LNG carrier was about 150 miles from Libya's Sirte, en route from Murmansk, Russia, to Port Said, Egypt. The tanker completely sank between Libya and Malta.

All 30 crew members aboard were safely rescued and transferred to another ship destined for Benghazi, Libya. The ship's last tracked position was in the western Mediterranean near Malta, as per MarineTraffic, a vessel monitoring service.

(With inputs from agencies.)