Two large oil tankers have collided and caught fire off Singapore’s coast, the UN’s shipping agency has said.

“Salvage and firefighting assets have been arranged by both vessel owners to support the firefighting efforts and subsequent towage of the vessels to safety,” a spokesperson with the International Maritime Organisation said.

“Navigational traffic is not affected.

“The status of the vessels and any pollution is currently unknown at this time.”

Photographs released by the Singapore Navy showed thick black smoke billowing from one tanker and crew being rescued from life rafts and flown to hospital.

The tankers – Singapore-flagged Hafni Nile and the Sao Tome and Principe-flagged tanker Ceres I – were around 34 miles (55km) northeast of the Singaporean island of Pedra Branca on the eastern approach to the Singapore Straits, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said.

The 22 crew of the Hafnia Nile and the 40 on the Ceres were all accounted for, the MPA said, which was alerted to the fire at 6.15am local time on Friday (10.15pm on Thursday British time).

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The environmental authorities in neighbouring Malaysia said they had been told to prepare for potential oil spills.

Singapore is Asia’s biggest oil trading hub and the world’s largest refuelling port.

Its surrounding waters are vital trade waterways between Asia and Europe and the Middle East and among the busiest global sea lanes.

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