“MV Diamond Highway”
Stranded ship catches fire in the Philippines
The “MV Diamond Highway” caught fire during salvage work. photo
© Uncredited/PHILIPPINE COAST GUARD/AP/dpa
During a typhoon in 2021, the ship ran aground. Years later, it suddenly catches fire. How could this happen?
A ship that ran aground in a typhoon in the Philippines more than two years ago caught fire during salvage operations. This was announced by the responsible coast guard today.
The MV Diamond Highway has been lying off the coast of Lapu-Lapu City in central Cebu Province since Typhoon Rai in December 2021. The fire broke out when metal scraps on board were cut. Everyone involved in the action is safe. More than 100 ships ran aground or sank during the typhoon. More than 400 people died.
Typhoons hit the Philippines every year, some causing severe devastation. In November 2013, storm Haiyan claimed the lives of more than 6,300 people. Shipping is part of everyday life in the Philippines.
The archipelago consists of more than 7000 islands. The worst peacetime shipping disaster occurred in the Southeast Asian country in 1987, when a ferry collided with a tanker. More than 4000 people lost their lives at that time.