According to the Portuguese Navy, the Lisbon Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) received a distress call via platform 112 about 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, regarding a fire aboard the tanker Greta K.
The tanker’s crew was made up of 19 Filipinos. Boats from the Leixes Life Saving Station safely evacuated 12 crew members. Seven members remain on the ship. The vessel was being towed to an offshore location for safety precautions at the time of reporting. The tanker was sailing about a mile and a half from the coast, next to Praia dos Ingleses, in Foz do Douro.
The Administration of the Ports of Douro, Leixões and Viana do Castelo (APDL), quickly managed to put three tugboats on board to help fight the fire. The Captain of the Port of Douro and Leixões also pledged two vessels from the Leixões Lifeguard Station
The Navy claims that its cargo consists of diesel and jet fuel. Portugal’s Autoridade Martima Nacional is preparing supplies and assembling pollution response teams in anticipation of potential pollution. The Navy’s Hydrographic Institute is also closely monitoring the situation and is prepared to calculate drift patterns in the event of a pollution event, according to the Navy.