A stricken Japanese whaling ship on fire off the Antarctic coast was lashed between two other ships on Friday to avoid drifting into ice as its crew worked to contain a blaze below deck.
Fire teams were unable to get to the fire on the black-hulled Nisshin Maru, the 8,000 ton flagship of the Japan whaling fleet, despite it having lost some of its intensity in freezing conditions, emergency officials said.
"There are still hot spots and they still cannot get down beneath the deck," Maritime New Zealand spokesman Lindsay Sturt told Reuters, adding the ship had been lashed alongside a fleet supply vessel and another whaling ship.
"Because they haven't got any power, there are icebergs and all sorts of stuff, so they don't want it just floating around. The plan is to move the ship north where it will be safer."
Fears were easing of an oil or chemical leak spill after the crew managed to pump off excess water and correct the list to the ship, Sturt said.
"They are trying to starve the fire as much as they can. Once they get in there they can start to search for the missing crewman and assess the damage," he said.
The fire broke out on Thursday. Maritime authorities said anti-whaling protesters in the Southern Ocean, which clashed with the whalers on Monday, were not involved. Continued...
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