Collision Ignites Oil Tanker in Turkish Strait; 15 Killed
ISTANBUL, Turkey — Firefighters fought an oil tanker fire in Istanbul’s Bosporus Strait on Monday after a late-night collision with a freighter killed at least 15 seamen and choked one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, officials said.
Sixteen other crew members from the two ships were missing, and there seemed little hope of finding survivors from the inferno that ripped through the tanker Nassia and the Shipbroker, a cargo ship, Sunday night. Both flew the Cypriot flag.
The accident was the worst in the Bosporus since a 1979 collision when an oil tanker exploded, killing 43 seamen.
Officials said the 19-mile strait will stay closed to shipping until all hazards from the collision have been cleared.
Turkey, worried about environmental risks, unveiled new safety rules for the strait in January and will enforce them beginning July 1.
Ankara wants to ensure that expanded exports of oil and gas from the former Soviet Union reach Europe via projected pipelines across Turkey to the Mediterranean, not through the Bosporus.
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