MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Four Korean fishing vessels burnt and lost in Montevideo in two months

Korean jiggers and trawlers docked in Montevideo

Between forty and fifty Asian crewmembers from two Korean flagged fishing vessels that caught fire Thursday night while docked in Montevideo, are being questioned by Uruguayan judicial authorities.

Anselmo Borges, Uruguayan Navy spokesperson said the questioning of crewmembers was normal procedure in such cases and when authorities are trying to determine the origin of the fires. He added no further information would be available until the inquiry was over but admitted one crewmember was hospitalized suffering from “toxic gases inhalation”.

Montevideo’s Fire Department said that one of the vessels was pulled out to the bay for safety reasons but the second remained stuck to the mud because of the low tide. Fire control operations continued until mid day with basic teams left on board to avoid reigniting. Losses are considered total.

Apparently local authorities believe the fires could have started following ethnic fighting on board the vessels which were manned mainly by Vietnamese and Malayan fishermen.

But this is the fourth incident with South Korean flagged vessels in the last two months. In late November another vessel burned and sunk in the port of Montevideo. All 38 crew members were rescued safely.

At the time it was reported that the fire began in the bunk area and spread to other areas of the 40 meters “Esperanza”. The cause remains under investigation. Uruguayan navy divers removed ammonia gas tanks used for refrigeration before the fire could cause them to explode.

“Esperanza” arrived on November 5 and was due to head soon for fishing grounds. Crew members were from South Korea, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Another South Korean vessel burned in Montevideo on Nov. 19. The cause of the fire on the “Excellent 8” also is unknown.