A 400 foot cargo ship carrying ethanol, benzene and fuel oil, had a pressure explosion in a cargo hold this morning in Gravesend Bay near the Verrazano Bridge, setting off a massive rescue response as the crew of 18 worked to contain the damage and keep the ship from listing anymore than it was after the accident. A fireboat goes out to the distressed ship. Maisel/NewsA 400 foot cargo ship carrying ethanol, benzene and fuel oil, had a pressure explosion in a cargo hold this morning in Gravesend Bay near the Verrazano Bridge, setting off a massive rescue response as the crew of 18 worked to contain the damage and keep the ship from listing anymore than it was after the accident. A fireboat goes out to the distressed ship.
A tank burst on a ship carrying thousands of gallons of ethanol in Brooklyn's Gravesend Bay Sunday morning, officials said.
The Coast Guard evacuated the bay after an overpressurized tank ruptured and part of the deck collapsed on the Sichem Defiance, a 443-foot tanker.
None of the 18 people on board were injured, and no ethanol spilled into the water.
The tanker, owned by Indian company Eitsen Chemical, was offloading 55,000 gallons of ethanol when the tank burst around 9 a.m.
The Coast Guard also cleared out a 1,000-yard area around the ship as a "precautionary measure," Lt. Eric Hanson, Coast Guard Sector New York's command duty officer, said.
A crowd of onlookers gawked at the ship listing offshore. "I'm just stunned," said Robert Ramos, 41, of Coney Island. "It just kept listing over and over. We thought it was going down."
