Two weeks ago, a fire erupted on a cargo ship named the MV X-Press Pearl, which was carrying tons of chemicals and plastic pellets, while it was anchored near Colombo, Sri Lanka. Efforts to douse the fire were unsuccessful, and the damaged ship began spilling its cargo. Tons of plastic pellets, also known as nurdles, spilled from their containers and began washing ashore on nearby beaches. The pellets, used as raw material to manufacture other plastic products, can absorb harmful chemicals and can be mistaken for food by marine animals. The fire on the ship recently died down, but efforts to tow it to deeper water failed, and it appears to be slowly sinking. Local authorities and fishermen are now concerned about the possibility of an oil spill, as the sinking ship was carrying several hundred tons of fuel oil.
A Cargo Ship Burns off Sri Lanka, Covering Beaches in Plastic Debris
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![A severely damaged and smoking cargo ship is seen at sea.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from a fire onboard the MV X-Press Pearl cargo ship as it sinks while being towed out to deeper water off the Colombo port, in Sri Lanka, on June 2, 2021. #
Sri Lanka Air Force via Reuters -
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![Soldiers wearing protective gear wade through thick piles of plastic debris floating in waves as they crash ashore.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members work to remove debris washed ashore from the damaged container ship MV X-Press Pearl, on a beach in Colombo on May 27, 2021. #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
![Several fireboats work to extinguish a burning ship, with black smoke rising into the sky.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from a fire onboard the MV X-Press Pearl in the seas off the Colombo port on May 26, 2021. #
Sri Lanka Air Force via Reuters -
![Fire and black smoke rise from a damaged ship, as seen from above.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from a fire onboard the MV X-Press Pearl on May 26, 2021. #
Sri Lanka Air Force via Reuters -
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![Several people push a large piece of debris in the surf.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from the MV X-Press Pearl in the distance as villagers push some of its spilled cargo on a beach in Ja-Ela, Sri Lanka, on May 26, 2021. #
Dinuka Liyanawatte / Reuters -
![Four soldiers jump to avoid an incoming wave carrying piles of debris.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members run to evade a wave carrying debris ashore from the burning MV X-Press Pearl, on the outskirts of Colombo on May 27, 2021. #
Eranga Jayawardena / AP -
![A small crab walks across piles of plastic pellets on a beach.]()
Read moreA crab roams on a beach polluted with plastic pellets that washed ashore on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, on May 31, 2021. #
Eranga Jayawardena / AP -
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![Navy members work to remove debris from a beach.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members work to remove debris on a beach in Colombo on May 27, 2021. #
Lakruwan Wanniarachchi / AFP / Getty -
![Firefighting boats attempt to put out a ship fire.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy and Indian Coast Guard ships try to douse the fire as smoke billows from the MV X-Press Pearl, as seen from a beach in Colombo on May 28, 2021. #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
![A view from an aircraft interior, showing a burning cargo ship seen through the front windows.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from the MV X-Press Pearl while it is being towed into deeper water on June 2, 2021. #
Sri Lanka Air Force via Reuters -
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![An aerial view of the heavily damaged deck of the burning ship.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from the MV X-Press Pearl on June 2, 2021. #
Sri Lanka Air Force via Reuters -
![Three people and a dog stand on a polluted beach, looking out to sea.]()
Read morePeople look at the debris washing up on a beach in Ja-Ela, Sri Lanka, on May 26, 2021. #
Dinuka Liyanawatte / Reuters -
![About a half-dozen Navy members dressed in protective gear walk on a polluted beach.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members collect debris that washed ashore at Kapungoda, Sri Lanka, on May 31, 2021. #
Eranga Jayawardena / AP -
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![Two front-end loaders move debris and sand on a polluted beach.]()
Read moreEarthmovers work to remove debris washed ashore on a beach in Colombo on May 28, 2021. #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
![A Navy member in protective gear wades through seawater and plastic debris.]()
Read moreA Sri Lankan Navy member wades through seawater and plastic debris on a beach in Colombo on May 27, 2021. #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
![Many Navy members in protective gear work on a beach.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members work to remove debris washed ashore from the MV X-Press Pearl on May 27, 2021. #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
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![Part of the burned ship is still visible as the vessel slowly sinks.]()
Read morePart of the MV X-Press Pearl, seen as the vessel sinks after burning for almost two weeks, just outside Colombo's harbor on June 2, 2021 #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
![Two Navy members stand on a beach near waves crashing ashore that are thick with plastic debris.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members work to remove debris washed ashore in Colombo on May 27, 2021. #
Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP / Getty -
![Navy members carry sacks of collected debris on a beach.]()
Read moreSri Lankan Navy members pull a sack of debris on a beach in Ja-Ela on May 28, 2021. #
Dinuka Liyanawatte / Reuters -
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![An aerial view of the heavily damaged ship.]()
Read moreSmoke rises from the MV X-Press Pearl while it is being towed on June 2, 2021. #
Sri Lanka Air Force via Reuters -
![A man walks on a polluted beach past sacks containing debris.]()
Read moreA man walks past sacks containing debris that washed ashore from the Singapore-registered container ship MV X-Press Pearl on a beach in Colombo on June 3, 2021. #
Lakruwan Wanniarachchi / AFP / Getty
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