Sri Lankan authorities were on Friday battling a possibility of toxic precipitation of acid rain due to the burning of the ‘X-Press Pearl’ ship that has been on fire since last week and has sparked fears of extensive marine pollution.
The ship, carrying nitric acid and cosmetic chemicals, caught fire off Sri Lankan waters last Thursday.
The marine environment protection authority (MPEA) said that it can be concluded that severe damages would have inflicted on marine life as well as corals and sea grass at seabed due to the toxic material which have sunk off the burning ship.
“Currently we can witness that carcasses of dead sea turtles, birds and small fish having washed to the shore” The General Manager of MPEA Dr. Turney Pradeep Kumara said.
“We can observe this situation in shores in Kaluthara, Colombo and also from Negombo to Kalpitiya. We can see that these animals have burn wounds on their bodies, which means that the temperature of water would have been extremely high” he went on to add.
“We also can conclude that severe air pollution has occurred due to the toxic smoke emitted from the burning ship. With air circulation being closest to the earth near areas like Kurunegala, we can predict that minor acidic rains can take place. Respiratory disorders may be caused due to inhaling of the toxic air. “ he said. (NewsWire)