A huge cleanup operation was underway for a sixth day in Sri Lanka Tuesday after a container ship laden with chemicals caught fire 12 days ago, inundating the country's western coastline with microplastic pollution and potentially hazardous waste.
Sri Lankan environmentalists said it is one of the worst ecological disasters in the country's history and have warned of a potential threat to marine life and the fishing industry. Members of the Sri Lanka Navy donned protective suits and rubber boots to remove the plastic pellets, chemical waste and debris that have blanketed beaches near the capital Colombo, including the popular tourist spot of Negombo.
""X-Press Feeders remain fully focused on the ongoing firefighting and salvage operation and will continue cooperating with the relevant investigations into this incident," it said. Sri Lankan authorities have launched criminal and civil probes into how the fire started. X-Press Feeders said it was"too early to tell" but had previously reported one of the containers onboard was leaking nitric acid at its previous stops in Hamad Port in Qatar and Hazira Port in India.
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