07:14 PM
Tuesday 07 February 2023
Ankara – (BBC)
Flames are still rising from inside the port of Iskenderun in Turkey for the second day in a row.
The ships, which were on their way to the port of Iskenderun, located about 112 km southwest of Gaziantep, were forced to divert their course to other ports. Because of the severe damage to the port.
The BBC’s Turkey correspondent Quentin Somerville says the air around the port “is still thick and thick with black smoke and the stench of burning petrol”.
The major shipping company, A.P. Moller-Maersk, said in a statement that “it is not yet clear when work will resume,” noting that many cargo ships have been diverted to other ports in Turkey, in addition to Port Said in Egypt.
The fire that broke out in the port places an additional burden on the shoulders of the government and relief agencies, who are struggling to get aid and supplies to the affected areas.
The fire broke out inside the port after the two earthquakes that Turkey witnessed on Monday.
The fire that broke out inside the containers in the port continued throughout the night.
Pictures showed columns of thick smoke rising from the port, as the fire spread to containers and other trucks in the area.
