A Turkish cargo ship caught fire while anchored in Georgian territorial waters. Territorial waters, are a belt of coastal waters extending at most twelve nautical miles from a coastal state. Territorial waters are the sovereign territory of the state, and foreign ships are allowed innocent passage.
One person was injured as a result of fire. The cause of the blaze remains unreported.
Any rescue operations ihave been complicated by very strong storms on the sea.
When extinguishing fire, crewmember George Podbelsky suffered serious burns, was taken ashore, and hospitalized.
The affected cargo ship was sailing under Turkish flag and was loaded with cement. The seagoing vessel also received two holes as a result of the storm and is in need of repair.
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