COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Salvage experts have failed to tow a fire-stricken container ship carrying chemicals out to sea and it has started to sink off Sri Lanka’s main port, raising fears of a marine environmental disaster. The operator of the container ship MV X-Press Pearl says the experts were able to board the vessel and attach a tow line, but that “efforts to move the ship to deeper waters have failed.” It says the back of the ship is now touching the ocean bottom at a depth of 21 meters (70 feet). The navy says the ship could cause severe pollution if it sinks at its current location off the port of Colombo.
