A fire that broke out on an oil tanker in the waters off South Korea's southern coast on Wednesday, March 20, has left two sailors dead and another injured.
The Korea Coast Guard said the incident aboard the ship, which has not been identified, occurred at 05:40 local time five kilometres off the coast of South Jeolla province.
Fire and rescue teams arrived on scene and managed to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading to other areas of the ship. The fire was declared extinguished after about four hours.
The two fatalities, aged 68 and 70, were found inside the pilothouse. The cause of their deaths has not yet been disclosed by authorities.
The chief engineer has been rushed to hospital to be treated for burns while the three remaining crewmembers managed to escape without injury.
The coast guard has begun its investigation into the cause of the incident.
