Sri Lanka faces marine disaster from burning ship
A man walks amid debris washed ashore from the Singapore-registered container ship MV X-Press Pearl, which has been burning for the 10th consecutive day in the sea off Sri Lanka s Colombo Harbour, on a beach in Colombo on May 29, 2021. – AFP photo
Sri Lanka faces an unprecedented pollution crisis as waves of plastic waste from a burning container ship hit the coast and threaten to devastate the local environment, a top environment official warned Saturday.
Thousands of navy ratings using mechanical diggers scooped tonnes of tiny plastic granules on the beaches that had come from the Singapore-registered MV X-Press Pearl that has been smouldering on the horizon for ten days.