An explosion and fire have left at least seven seafarers dead and others injured on a Greek-controlled bulker at a Moroccan port.
An official for the country’s health ministry said the bodies of several crew members were recovered from the 91,400-dwt Toro Rosso (built 1997), and two others died in hospital in Casablanca, according to Moroccan news website SNRTnews.
The post-panamax bulker was rocked by a blast on Tuesday while it was at the port of Jorf Lasfar, several media outlets reported.
The ship was at the port on the outskirts of El Jadida to load a cargo of fertiliser.
One other crew member was transferred to Casablanca, while two other injured seafarers were transported to a clinic in El Jadida, SNRTnews reported.
Authorities also mounted a search for other missing crew members.
Moroccan news site Le360 reported the ship was eight nautical miles (15 km) off the coast when the incident took place.
The newspaper said a source, whom they did not name, claimed the explosion was followed by an engine room fire, according to a computer translation of the report.
The Panamanian-flag ship is owned by Northern Marine Shipping, a one-ship entity set up in Panama City, according to data from Equasis.
Clarksons lists the Toro Rosso’s technical manager as Greece’s Ocean Summit Shipping, which could not be immediately reached for comment.
The shipbroker’s vessel database also lists the ship as operated by Turkey’s Booxmar Sorvey Danismanlik, which also could not be immediately reached.
Le364 reported that the ship had been chartered by an Ethiopian company.
The Toro Rosso is insured by the American Club and Bureau Veritas is its classification society.
Satellite tracking data shows the vessel was in ballast when it approached the port. It had dropped off its last cargo at Rizhao, China, and braved the Red Sea on its way to Morocco.
The last reported inspection of the ship was in July 2022, when it was detained in Oman after port-state authorities found nine deficiencies, including three related to fire safety. The deficiencies that were listed as grounds of detention were related to the maintenance of the vessel and its equipment, as well as problems with its voyage data recorder.
