Colombo, June 2 (Xinhua): The Sri Lankan Navy on Wednesday said that operations to tow the burnt X Press Pearl ship had been halted after the rear end of the vessel had hit the sea bed.
Navy Spokesman Captain Indika De Silva told Xinhua that following a few hours of operations to tow the vessel into deep seas, operations were halted as the rear end had hit the sea bed and this could cause further damages.
By Wednesday evening, the front part of the vessel was still seen floating on the water while the rear part had sunk.
Officials said the vessel was now partly sunk but discussions were ongoing by the salvage team on how it could prevent the entire vessel from sinking at the present location.
The navy spokesperson said that no oil spill had been detected or seen from the vessel but if this happens, they had the facilities to contain it within a limited area.
The ship presently lies on the outskirts (about 9 nautical miles) off the Colombo harbor.
Sri Lanka will seek compensation from the Singapore-based parent company owning the vessel while police have begun criminal investigations surrounding the fire.
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