Xinhua
12 May 2022, 01:25 GMT+10
QUITO, May 11 (Xinhua) -- A tourist boat caught fire and sank on Wednesday west of the Santiago Island, the fourth largest island in the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador, leaving no victims, said the Directorate of the Galapagos National Park.
The passengers on the ill-fated boat were rescued, said the agency on its Twitter account, without specifying the number of people on board.
The Ecuadorian navy moved in to assist in the rescue operation, according to the directorate, which is responsible for the management of the Galapagos National Park.
Efforts were taken to minimize the impact of the boat-sinking on the volatile sea ecosystem, and a possible oil spill was ruled out.
"According to what was reported by the boat owner, the diesel with which it was operating was burned out in the fire," said the sources close to the directorate, which carried out an on-site inspection on Wednesday morning and reported no oil spill.
The Santiago Island, among others, is a popular tourism attraction in Ecuador.
This was the second loss of a tourist boat in the Galapagos Islands region in 2022.
On April 23, a boat sank in the Academia Bay on the Santa Cruz Island, prompting an immediate operation to reduce the impact on the ecosystems of some 2,000 gallons of diesel on board.
The Galapagos Islands, located 970 kilometers from the Pacific coast of Ecuador, was named a UNESCO Natural World Heritage site in 1978.
The region is home to numerous endangered species of flora and fauna that served as a laboratory for the English naturalist, geologist and biologist Charles Darwin to establish his theory of the evolution of species.
Get a daily dose of Central Coast News news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Central Coast News.
More InformationNEW YORK CITY, New York: With just weeks to spare before a potential government default, U.S. lawmakers passed a sweeping tax and spending...
PARIS, France: Fast-fashion giant Shein has been fined 40 million euros by France's antitrust authority over deceptive discount practices...
PALO ALTO/TEL AVIV: The battle for top AI talent has claimed another high-profile casualty—this time at Safe Superintelligence (SSI),...
FRANKLIN, Tennessee: Hundreds of thousands of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles are being recalled across the United States due to a potential...
REDMOND, Washington: Microsoft is the latest tech giant to announce significant job cuts, as the financial strain of building next-generation...
LONDON UK - U.S. stock markets were closed on Friday for Independence Day. Global Forex Markets Wrap Up Friday with Greeback Comeback...
PALO ALTO/TEL AVIV: The battle for top AI talent has claimed another high-profile casualty—this time at Safe Superintelligence (SSI),...
SANTA CLARA, California: Nvidia came within a whisker of making financial history on July 3, briefly surpassing Apple's all-time market...
SACRAMENTO, California: California's multibillion-dollar farms are facing a growing crisis—not from drought or pests, but from a sudden...
SAN FRANCISCO, California: Grammarly is doubling down on AI-powered productivity tools with the acquisition of Superhuman, a sleek...
MENLO PARK, California: Robinhood is giving European investors a new way to tap into America's most prominent tech names — without...
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed Elon Musk's success has been built on government subsidies. Without...