An oil barge carrying 60,000 liters of diesel sank near the Maldives’s Embudu lagoon following a fire that broke out on the ship, as per a report in the Raajje tv. However, authorities in the Maldives confirmed that they haven’t observed any leakage so far. 

On Sunday, the Maldivian National Defense Forces Coast Guard (MNDF-CG)  along with the country’s Environment Protection Agency (EPA) visited the site where the ship sank on Saturday. 

Authorities announced that the sunken ship posed no danger in the region, but added they were still monitoring the situation. The ship is currently 1000 meters below the sea surface, they revealed. However, they have not yet decided whether to resurface the sunken ship. 

Four people had been rescued by a launch of a nearby resort when they jumped off from the burning ship on Saturday. The Maldives’ fire and rescue service had attempted to douse the fire but couldn’t save it from sinking. 

The President’s Office said the government was taking all measures to minimize the environmental impact of the incident.