Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said four tugboats were deployed after the vessels were separated and their crews evacuated, amid fears that the pressurized gas aboard could cause a wider disaster.
Minister of Transport Kamel Al-Wazir described the response as “a heroic operation,” saying the drone damaged the external stairway of the storage vessel and struck a gas pipe aboard the regasification vessel, igniting the escaping gas.
Minister Al-Wazir shakes hands with tugboat crews who helped contain the fire aboard a regasification vessel at Damietta Port, honouring their role that prevented the blaze from spreading. Photo courtesy of Transport Ministry
He said the storage vessel was moved 10–12 kilometres outside the port, while four Egyptian tugboats, each with a bollard-pull capacity of 70 tonnes, towed the burning regasification vessel 3.5 kilometres away.
Firefighting continued for around 12 hours, from 4 pm until 4 am, and the blaze was fully extinguished by 6 am, officials said. Damietta Port remained fully operational, with vessels continuing to arrive and depart and loading and unloading proceeding normally.
Behind the official account were captains, pilots, engineers, mechanics, electricians and sailors who worked metres from the flames. Some telephoned their families because they feared that they might not return.
A call that could have been the last
When Mahmoud El-Bahrawy telephoned his wife and children from Damietta Port, it was not simply to tell them he would be home late.
The electrician aboard the tugboat Abu Zeid was facing the burning regasification vessel as crews prepared for the possibility of an explosion.
“I was facing the fire. I called my wife and children and told them to take care of themselves,” El-Bahrawy told Cairo24.
“I felt it could be the last call because we were expecting an explosion at any moment. Thank God, we were spared, and no one was injured despite all the maneuvers and the enormous effort.”
El-Bahrawy said the Abu Zeid crew initially believed the sound of the impact had come from their own tugboat. When they rushed outside, however, they saw smoke rising from one of the gas vessels.
A warning came over the radio. Minutes later, the situation escalated as a more visible and sustained fire broke out aboard the regasification vessel.
The tugboats moved almost immediately, activating their firefighting systems before reaching the scene to save time. Their assignments were divided between the burning ship and the other damaged vessel.
Captains coordinated with the chief pilot over the radio to determine the role of each tugboat during the maneuver. Mooring lines securing the vessel to the quay were cut so it could be moved away.
Smoke, wind and the large volumes of water discharged by the firefighting equipment severely restricted visibility.
“We worked for four days inside the port with almost no sleep,” El-Bahrawy said. “Everyone performed his role as though it were his last day.”
A small tugboat in a tight space
Hossam El-Ghoul, a mechanic aboard the tugboat Ibrahim, had been preparing for a routine port maneuver when the emergency began.
The Ibrahim had been due to help maneuver a cargo ship towards Berth 30. Its crew completed that assignment in less than 30 minutes before heading directly towards the burning vessel.
Although smaller than the other tugboats involved, the Ibrahim’s size allowed it to enter the narrow space between the ship and the quay. From there, its crew fought the fire while the larger tugboats operated from the seaward side.
El-Ghoul said the number of mooring lines, combined with the wind and heavy water spray, made it difficult to see or maneuver.
His responsibility was to ensure that the tugboat’s machinery continued operating without interruption throughout the emergency.
Maintenance work completed the day before the incident had left the Ibrahim fully prepared, he said. Backup systems were also available to prevent the tugboat from stopping if individual equipment failed.
That readiness allowed the crew to remain close to the burning ship and continue fighting the fire despite the deteriorating conditions.
‘Our first objective was to protect the port’
Mohamed Salah, a mechanic aboard another participating tugboat, said his crew heard the incident at around 2 pm and reached the vessel within minutes.
“Our first objective was to protect the port,” he told Cairo24.
The crews had to prevent the fire from reaching other vessels and port facilities while simultaneously cooling and towing the burning ship.
“This was the most difficult thing I have ever seen in my career. I saw death with my own eyes,” Salah said.
Mechanics kept the tugboats’ engines and firefighting systems operating, electricians maintained power and communications, sailors handled the lines, and captains and pilots maneuvered through the smoke and water.
Salah said the experience was terrifying, but the successful completion of the operation became a source of pride for the entire crew.
Minutes to respond, hours to fight
Electrical technician Mohamed Selim said his crew departed the quay three to four minutes after receiving the alert and began a combined firefighting and towing maneuver immediately after reaching the vessel.
The operation brought together captains, pilots, engineers, mechanics, electricians and sailors, whose work had to remain closely coordinated despite the heat, smoke and constant danger.
Selim said the crews fought the fire continuously for between 12 and 13 hours and towed the vessel between 3.5 and four kilometres from the port.
Like El-Bahrawy, Selim contacted his family during the operation. He called his wife and father in an attempt to reassure them, although he remained conscious of the risk surrounding him.
Selim has worked in the profession for nine years and has a two-year-old child. He said the public response following the incident had made the crews feel that their efforts were appreciated.
“Thank God, I feel that I did something worthwhile,” he said. “We did something we will remember for the rest of our lives.”
The danger continued after the flames
Extinguishing the visible fire did not immediately end the emergency.
The vessel remained hot, and smoke continued to rise, creating the risk of reignition or an explosion.
Salah El-Maddah, the electrical and radio officer aboard a tugboat assigned to the subsequent cooling operation, said his crew began work at 8 am on Thursday after the vessel had been moved into shallow water and secured.
Two tugboats sprayed the vessel with water in alternating shifts, working for 17 hours on the first day and 14 hours on the second.
Cooling and safety operations continued for three consecutive days.
“Our mission was to cool the ship so there would be no danger of an explosion, God forbid,” El-Maddah told Cairo24 news website.
The tugboats also twice transported the vessel’s captain and a team of engineers aboard to inspect its condition.
Safety measures remained in place until midnight on the third day, when the cooling operation ended, and the vessel was judged to be stable.
“Our children kept calling to ask where we were, and our families were afraid for us,” El-Maddah said.
‘A heroic operation’
Madbouly said the authorities’ priority was to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading, given the quantities of pressurized gas aboard the vessels and the danger this posed to the port and surrounding area.
The two vessels were separated using remotely operated systems, he said. The storage vessel was moved away, while the crew of the burning regasification vessel was evacuated as a safety precaution.
Four tugboats and their technical crews were then sent to pull the burning vessel away from the port.
Madbouly said drones and specialized chemical agents were used alongside the tugboats’ water cannons during the firefighting operation.
The response involved coordination among the Damietta Port Authority, the petroleum and transport ministries, the Armed Forces, the Ministry of Interior and other security and state agencies, he added.
Al-Wazir said the operation reflected emergency scenarios previously practiced at the country’s Crisis and Emergency Management Centre.
He praised Damietta Port workers for approaching the burning vessel, towing it into open water and continuing firefighting operations for 12 hours.
The minister said port operations continued at full capacity throughout the emergency. Fifteen vessels were received while others departed, with all terminals operating and navigation, loading and unloading continuing normally.
He added that the government was working to provide tall movable stairways for regasification vessels to improve access and allow fires to be fought from above during future emergencies.
For those aboard the tugboats, however, the operation was not conducted from a crisis-management room. It unfolded on the water, close to the flames and amid poor visibility, with the threat of an explosion hanging over every maneuver.
Their success was measured as much by what did not happen as by what did: the fire did not spread through the port, navigation was not halted, no casualties were reported, and the crews returned safely to their families.
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