Tunis, Apr 17 (IANS): A merchant ship carrying about 750 tons of fuel sank off the Gabes coast in Tunisia, the Tunisian authorities have said.
The Tunisian navy rescued all seven crew members of the Equatorial Guinea-flagged vessel, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development said on Saturday in a statement.
The Ministry added that it is working on preventing an environmental disaster from the incident, Xinhua news agency reported.
The ship sailing from the Egyptian port of Damietta failed to reach its final destination of Malta due to bad weather conditions and the agitation of the sea, said the Ministry.
The crew sent a distress call seven miles away from the Gabes coast, saying the water seeped into the engine room to a height of two metres.