A ship carrying 130 tons
of liquid caustic soda was sinking on the Yangtze River, risking
polluting the river with the corrosive chemical, said a local
government official on Friday.
The ship, "Xianghan
Shouwei 0298", was set to sail to neighboring Hunan Province with
500 tons of liquid caustic soda from Zhicheng Harbor in Yidu City,
on the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, said Xu Changming, a
spokesman of Yidu government.
However, workers found
water leaking into the ship around 7 a.m. on Friday when they had
loaded 130 tons of the chemical.
The chemical was sealed
inside the ship and no leakage has been reported, though half the
ship is now under water, Xu said.
The city environment
bureau had sent investigators to the scene, who were testing the
water quality every 30 minutes. The water is so far
unpolluted.
Rescue ships were coming
to the pier from Zhicheng Harbor from two kilometers away. But they
were hampered by poor visibility caused by thick fog, said Wu Lin,
head of the maritime office of Yidu government.
Liquid caustic soda,
with a concentration of 32 percent, is listed as a dangerous
chemical, and it is feared its leakage may pollute the
river.
(Xinhua News Agency
December 14, 2007)
