Fire on fishing vessel kills 6 in South Africa

By Hassan Isilow

JOHANNESBURG (AA) - At least six people were killed and three others injured after a fishing vessel caught fire late Thursday at South Africa’s Durban harbor, an emergency official confirmed on Friday.

Garrith Jamieson, director of the Rescue Care emergency medical service, which responded to the incident, said in a statement e-mailed to Anadolu Agency that firefighters worked throughout Thursday night and only discovered the dead bodies on Friday morning.

“Six people were found aboard the fishing vessel. They had unfortunately all passed away due to the injuries they had sustained,” he said.

Garrith said three men who were first rescued from the boat on Thursday were treated on the scene and dispatched to a hospital.

South Africa’s national police spokesman Brig. Vishnu Naidu also confirmed the incident to Anadolu Agency via telephone. “I can confirm that the vessel had docked at our harbor and it was under repair before it caught fire,” he said.

Naidu said police was investigating the cause of the fire and could not divulge further details.

Local media reports claim that the vessel belongs to a company in Mozambique but officials are yet to confirm this. However, nationals from both Mozambique and Portugal were among those injured.