The crew members of the British-flagged Marlin Luanda have succeeded in dousing the flames on Saturday, 19 hours after it came under attack from Houthi rebels on January 26 in the Gulf of Aden. A video showed the blaze being extinguished.
The company in a statement said that the vessel is now sailing towards a safe harbour after it received assistance from French, US, and Indian vessels.
The ship was carrying a Russian-produced refined oil product on behalf of commodities trader Singapore-based Trafigura.
“The vessel is now sailing towards a safe harbour. The crew continues to monitor the vessel and cargo closely,” it said in a statement.
Trafigura also hailed the “exceptional dedication and bravery” of the crew of the Marlin Luanda, who it said had managed to control the fire in “exceptionally difficult circumstances”. It also thanked the US, French and Indian navies for their “essential assistance”.
The rebel group based in Yemen claimed that they had targeted a "British oil" vessel following "American-British aggression against our country".