Baltimore’s already bruised maritime sector was dealt another scare on Monday evening when a Greek-owned coal carrier suffered a spectacular explosion as it departed the port.
The 81,681 dwtW Sapphire, managed by Athens-based W Marine and flagged in Liberia, had just cleared CSX’s Curtis Bay terminal around 6:30 pm when a blast ripped through its forward cargo section, sending fireballs and a 80 m smoke plume into the summer sky close to the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge. Local residents described hearing the detonation and feeling vibrations in their homes.
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All 23 crew and two pilots were safely accounted for, with no injuries reported. The 13-year-old bulker, laden with coal and bound for Port Louis, Mauritius, was corralled by tugs and guided to anchorage, where it remains under US Coast Guard supervision. An exclusion zone was quickly thrown up around the stricken ship.
While initial checks suggest no pollution, investigators are probing whether spontaneous combustion or coal dust ignition might have triggered the incident.
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