New Delhi, June 8 -- A fire erupted on a Palau-flagged tanker with a crew of 24 Indians when it was attacked off the coast of Oman on Monday, and all the crew members were later evacuated to safety by the Oman Air Force.

The fire was reported by the crew of MT Marivex, which was not carrying any cargo, at 1.30pm, Opesh Kumar Sharma, director in the shipping ministry, told a media briefing. "The vessel was well out of the Strait of Hormuz, and well clear to the south," he said, adding that all the crew members were safe.

Several hours later, the crew members were evacuated by a helicopter of the Oman Air Force, videos posted on social media platforms showed.

An audio recording of a SOS message purportedly sent by the crew of Marivex fea...