Sri Lanka Launches Probe After Burning Ship Leads To Pollution Crisis

The Singapore-registered MV X-Press Pearl has been smouldering on the horizon for 11 days after a blaze broke out as it was heading to Colombo from Gujarat, India.

Sri Lanka launched a criminal probe on Sunday into a massive container ship fire that has swamped the island nation's coast with plastic pollution in an unprecedented marine disaster. Tonnes of microplastic granules have inundated the South Asian country's famed beaches, forcing a fishing ban and prompting fears of ecological damage. The Singapore-registered MV X-Press Pearl has been smouldering on the horizon for 11 days after a blaze broke out as it was heading to Colombo from Gujarat, India. The 25-member crew, who have already been evacuated from the ship, will be questioned on Monday after a complaint was lodged by Sri Lanka's Marine Environment Protection Authority, police said.