HMM Namu Arrives at Port of Dubai; Investigation into Explosion to Begin Soon

\r\n[Financial News]  HMM Namu, which suffered an explosion in the Strait of Hormuz, arrived at the Port of Dubai on the 8th. It took about 12 hours after towing began from the accident area in the Strait of Hormuz.
After the cause of the accident is examined at Dubai Drydocks, the largest repair shipyard in the Middle East located at the Port of Dubai, HMM Namu will undergo repairs. Once the investigation begins, the cause of the accident is expected to be identified quickly.
The government investigation team has already arrived on site and is preparing to begin a full-scale probe into the cause of the accident. The team consists of three investigators from the Korea Maritime Safety Tribunal under the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) and four forensic experts from the National Fire Agency (NFA). It will examine whether the ship fire was caused by external factors, including an attack by the Islamic Republic of Iran, or by internal factors such as a vessel defect.
All 24 crew members aboard the ship at the time of the accident, including six Korean nationals, have not yet disembarked. They are also expected to be questioned.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) maintained its position from the previous day that a detailed investigation must come first in response to reports in Iranian state media that the Korean vessel had been targeted.
A MOFA official said on the 7th, regarding the IRIB report that the Korean ship had been targeted, "We will not jump to conclusions." The official also said, "A detailed investigation by the government team dispatched to the site comes first."
Press TV, the state-run broadcaster of the Islamic Republic of Iran, reported the previous day that "targeting a Korean ship that violated maritime regulations was a signal that Iran would enforce its sovereign rights by force."
There were also suggestions that the fire on the HMM vessel may have been caused by an external impact. Jeon Jeong-geun, chairperson of the HMM Maritime Union, said, "It would be difficult for an explosion like that to happen internally. There must have been some external impact."
He added, "One could speculate that a shock wave may have caused problems in the fuel system and led to the fire." He continued, "At the time, the government sent a warning message saying that a suspected mine-like object, which appeared rough and spherical, was floating nearby and that people should be careful." He also said, "I also wondered whether a floating mine could have been the cause." Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump had also said, "A Korean ship was sailing alone and got hit."
However, the Korean government is maintaining a cautious stance. Wi Sung-lac, National Security Director at the Blue House, said on the 6th, "It does not seem so certain that it was hit." He added, "There was no flooding or listing of the ship."
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rainman@fnnews.com Kim Kyung-soo Reporter