Investigators Seek Cause Of LPG Tanker Blast

An investigation is underway into the cause of an explosion aboard a Liberian-registered LPG tanker that killed five people and injured eight others in a Philippine shipyard facility on Oct. 4. An official at the Subic Shipyard said the blast occurred in a cargo tank of the vessel Mundogas Europe, but work at the yard is continuing as usual. "It (the explosion) did not destroy any of our facilities...It was contained in the drydock area and did not disturb the other part of the shipyard," shipyard administrative and finance manager Agnes Lorenzo said. Lorenzo said she did not know what caused the explosion. "Our investigating committee is still doing the investigation," she said. She said she did not know if the Mundogas Europe was carrying any cargo at the time of the explosion. Lorenzo said she had no information about where the tanker had come from, where it was going after repairs or who the owners were. "It is registered in Liberia," she said. London shipbrokers said a 1968-made 17,699 dwt LPG carrier called the Mundogas Europe was sold to Olympi of Chile for $4 million last month.