A lighter owned by Bangladesh Shipping Corporation caught fire at the outer anchorage of Chittagong port on Saturday while transporting oil from a mother ship, port officials said. The Bangladesh navy rescued all 48 crew of the Banglar Shourav, including 16 who leapt into the Bay of Bengal to escape the flames, an official told Reuters.
Four of the crew including the ship's Captain Shams were hospitalised with minor injuries, he said. The 14,000-tonne capacity lighter was mostly empty as it was going back from the port to the sea for reloading, he said.
The port officials said the fire at the vessel's tanker, which started at 1230 pm (0630 GMT), and an explosion onboard three hours later cracked the vessel, taking on water.