Wreck of cargo ship that caused marine ecology disaster near Sri Lanka's coast to be removed

The wreck of a Singapore-flagged cargo vessel, which caught fire and sank near the Colombo beach in May, is to be removed from the sea bed, the owners said on Wednesday.

The cargo vessel - MV 'X-PRESS PEARL'- was carrying a consignment of chemicals and raw materials for cosmetics from Hazira in Gujarat to Colombo Port on May 20 when it caught fire some 9.5 nautical miles away from the port of Colombo.

The ship's Singapore-based operators on Wednesday said that they had signed a contract with a salvage company this week for the removal of the wreck.

“The wreck removal plan will ensure a complete removal and safe, proper disposal of the wreck and any debris and pollutants around the wreck.”.

Sri Lanka had claimed they had suffered the island’s worst marine disaster due to the ship catching fire with dead turtles, dolphins and whales washed up on the shores.

The Marine Environment Pollution Authority said that over 130 marine animals had been found dead due to the fire.

Apart from the 325 metric tonnes of fuel in its tanks, the vessel was loaded with 1,486 containers carrying about 25 tonnes of hazardous nitric acid.

The operators said that Sri Lanka has submitted a second compensation claim, which is being reviewed by the vessel owners.

The operators said in July that the vessel owner’s insurance company made an initial compensation payment of USD 3.6 million to the Sri Lankan Government.

Sri Lanka launched criminal action against the ship's captain, chief engineer, chief officer and its local agent.

Environmentalist groups have also filed legal action against the government and the owners for failing to prevent the disaster.