Fire Breaks Out on Decommissioned Vessel at Port of Spain

On Tuesday, May 14, the Port of Spain reported a fire on a retired vessel, AV Aqua Marine, anchored off the port. The National Energy Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago swiftly responded by deploying its National Energy Resilience Team to extinguish the fire.

Assistance was provided by the Coast Guard, a Port Authority tug boat, and the Marine Police. The Assistant Chief Fire Officer confirmed that the fire was extinguished after three and a half hours of effort. Thankfully, there were no casualties, and the extent of the vessel's damage is currently being assessed.

The Aqua Marine, an oil tanker, has been stranded in local waters since 2011. It was purchased by a local company, Jose Marine, to extract scrap metal. According to reports, the fire ignited from residual fuel on board while metal scraping operations were underway.

Earlier in 2023, a fire aboard the MV Cabo Star also disrupted Trinidad and Tobago's waterways.