VIDEO. Sri Lanka: oil tanker on fire raises fears of another oil spill

A new risk of an oil spill in the Indian Ocean?

The Panamanian-flagged tanker New Diamond remained in flames off Sri Lanka on Friday for the second day in a row, heightening fears of a large-scale oil spill in the Indian Ocean after the one that polluted in August the coast of Mauritius.

The tanker carries 270,000 tonnes of crude oil and 1,700 tonnes of diesel.

He issued a distress call Thursday after an explosion in his engine room.

The Maldives, located a thousand kilometers southwest of Sri Lanka, have expressed concern over a possible oil spill.

But the Sri Lankan authorities say the situation remains under control.

Departing from Kuwait, bound for the Indian port of Paradip, the New Diamond is about thirty meters longer than the Japanese bulk carrier MV Wakashio which ran aground at the end of July on a reef in the south-east of Mauritius.