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Yemeni-flagged ship carrying liquid gas catches fire in Jordanian port of Aqaba | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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AMMAN, Jordan (AP) – A tanker carrying liquefied natural gas caught fire as it unloaded in Aqaba port on Thursday, injuring 12 people, the manager of the Jordanian port said.

Four of the injured were fire-fighters, who needed an hour to bring the blaze under control, said Awwad al-Maaytah, the director general of Aqaba Port Authority. The eight other injured were crewmen.

The ship was promptly evacuated and towed away from the pier in the Red Sea port. The fire began at about 10 a.m. (0700 GMT). By the time it was towed away, it had unloaded only half of its cargo.

Al-Maaytah confirmed a state news agency report that nobody was killed in the fire, and said the cause was under investigation.

The state agency Petra said the injured people were taken to the military hospital in Aqaba, 350 kilometers (210 miles) south of the Jordanian capital. It did not give further details.

Jordan imports its liquefied gas from neighboring Egypt, most of it through an underwater pipeline. But some of the gas is brought by ship across the Red Sea.