Tanker blast in East China Sea sparks environmental concerns

Chinese authorities battling a blaze aboard an Iranian oil tanker . /AFP/Getty Images

A Chinese government official said Monday that a fire which engulfed an Iranian tanker that sank recently in the East China Sea has ceased, leaving mounting concerns over the serious harm it would cause to the marine ecosystem, per the Associated Press.

What happened: The Iranian tanker, carrying natural gas condensate, crashed into a Chinese freight ship on Jan. 6, per the AP. Three bodies from the tanker, which has a crew of 32, were found. The Chinese official told the AP that a probe into the blast will be conducted.

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Tropical Storm Zeta has killed at least two people, triggered flooding, downed powerlines and caused widespread outages since making landfall in Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane on Wednesday.

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