Blaze onboard Chinese dredger at Haifa port

Fire broke out early this morning onboard a China-flagged hopper dredger berthed at Israel’s Haifa Port and threatened to engulf the ship as it spread along the vessel’s rubber insulation, local reports say.

The crew of Chinese nationals were able to escape to the shore unharmed.

Firefighters extinguished the fire around three hours after it broke out on the Hang Bo 3001. 

An initial investigation determined the blaze was started by welding during repair work on the vessel.