PHUKET: One of seven unregistered fishing trawlers confiscated three years ago was destroyed by a fire at its mooring in a mangrove forest along Tha Chin canal on Thursday night.
The fire aboard the trawler Shun Lai was reported to Phuket police about 9.30pm.
By the time emergency units arrived at the scene, near Asia Marina pier in tambon Ratsada, the boat was fully engulfed in flames, which were threatening to spread to other large vessels.
The burning boat was about 100 metres from the pier,which delayed efforts to fight the blaze. Two local fishing boats and a patrol boat were used to transport fire hoses and extinguishers out to the trawler.
It took firemen about two hours to extinguish the flames.
Police said the fire-gutted trawler was one of seven tuna fishing vessels confiscated in Thai waters off Phuket on Nov 28, 2016 for illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) violations.
The vessels were the Shun Lai, Yutana No 3, Abubant 1, Abubant 3, Abubant 6, Abubant 9 and Abubant 12.
Authorities found there were irregularities in the registration of these vessels, which claimed to be flagged in landlocked Bolivia. Bolivian authorities confirmed the trawlers were not registered there.
Police were investigating the cause of the fire.