At least 10 people were killed and 18 others injured after a fire broke out on an oil tanker early Wednesday (Oct 15) while it was undergoing repairs in Indonesia’s Riau Islands province, local police reported.
The fire occurred at around 4 a.m. local time on the MT Federal II at a shipyard in Batam, approximately 20 kilometres from Singapore by sea, according to Batam Police Chief Zaenal Arifin.
Arifin confirmed that the vessel was docked for repairs and was not carrying oil at the time. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
“All the victims were working on repairing the vessel,” Arifin said. “Some of them were heavily injured.” As of Wednesday afternoon, the injured were receiving treatment in local hospitals.
It remains unclear who owns the MT Federal II.
This is not the first such incident in Batam. In June, a vessel caught fire while being repaired, killing four people and injuring nine others. In that case, local police identified two individuals suspected of violating standard safety procedures.
Authorities continue to investigate the latest incident to determine the cause and ensure safety compliance at shipyards.
