Norwegian oil terminal evacuated after blaze on tanker

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Police evacuated people from a major tanker port in southern Norway Friday as a precaution after a fire on an oil tanker.

Firefighters took two hours to extinguish the blaze on the Liberia-flagged Dubai Harmony, assisted by the vessel's crew, the local fire department said, adding they were continuing to cool the area.

The ship was docked at Stureterminalen, north of Bergen. The terminal's main operator, Equinor — Norway's largest oil and gas company — said it was alerted at 11 a.m. about a fire in the engine room of Dubai Harmony.

There were 102 people in the terminal at the time of the incident, Equinor said in a statement, adding that 22 of them were considered to have vital tasks and remained on site. Police said there were 23 crew members on the tanker.

Local newspaper Bergens Tidende said rescue ships and tug boats were on standby and a 500-meter (550-yard) security perimeter around the Dubai Harmony was established.

The terminal receives oil from several offshore facilities in the North Sea via pipelines. Norway is one of the world's largest exporters of oil and gas.