3 Explosions Hit Burning Tanker Off Italy : Disaster: As fears of a massive oil spill grow, the government declares a state of emergency.

A huge explosion and two smaller blasts rocked a burning tanker Saturday, heightening fears that the sinking vessel could break apart and spill millions of gallons of oil on the Italian Riviera.

Italy’s new coalition government declared a national state of emergency shortly after being sworn in. “It means we are mobilizing all the resources we have got--navy, police, everything--because if this wretched oil does get out, it threatens not just Italy but the whole Mediterranean,” said Pio Mastrobuoni, a spokesman for Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti.

The tanker, the Cypriot-registered Haven, was loaded with nearly 41 million gallons of Iranian crude oil when it began burning Thursday. It was set ablaze by an explosion in a holding tank that had just been unloaded, authorities said.

The fire on the Haven killed three sailors and three were missing late Saturday. The 29 crew members who jumped overboard were hospitalized with burns and smoke inhalation, 11 of them in critical condition.

Early Saturday, another big explosion hit the ship, rattling downtown Genoa. The blast ignited oil floating on the sea, forcing anti-pollution boats to operate farther from the ship. Two smaller explo sions followed around midday.

The blasts engulfed the Haven in a cloak of flames and smoke.

Only the stern of the Haven was above the water by evening. Capt. Guido Garri, an officer of the Genoa port authority, said the forward part of the 990-foot-long tanker was resting on the seabed.

Authorities said their biggest fear was that the Haven would break apart and spill its cargo into the sea. If it sank intact, crews could probably pump out the oil, they said.

Experts of the Genoa port authority estimated about 16 million gallons might have burned by late Saturday.

A towering wall of black smoke could be seen from resorts west of Genoa, and thousands of residents and tourists lined the beaches and waterfront to see the fire. Many locals on Italy’s northwest Riviera coast expressed concern that if the tanker discharges its full load, it could cause the Mediterranean’s biggest ecological disaster.

Two French ministers, reflecting the Paris government’s fears that pollution could spread to the neighboring French Riviera, flew over the tanker Saturday.

Meanwhile, port officials in Leghorn said a second tanker, the Agip Abruzzo, was still burning but the fire was confined to a section of the stern Saturday night.

The tanker was rammed by the ferry Moby Prince late Wednesday night and both ships caught fire. Officials said the tanker was carrying 24 million gallons of oil.

Italian authorities said the death toll from the ferry accident might be as high as 151. Officials previously put the toll at 72 passengers and all but one of the 68 crewmen. The tanker’s crew escaped unharmed.

The Civil Defense agency said reports from relatives indicated there may have been 12 more passengers aboard the ferry who boarded at the last minute without being registered.

The only survivor, 24-year-old sailor Alessio Bertrand, bitterly told reporters Saturday that many more could have been saved if rescuers had arrived faster.

“The rescuers took too long. They took two hours. If they’d come earlier, lots of people could have been saved,” said Bertrand, who was still on board the burning ferry when rescuers arrived. They told him to throw himself into the water.

Rescue workers have blamed the collision on fog. But an amateur video has shown flames visible from land several miles away.

The outline of the ferry could also be seen in the video, indicating that the fire took time to spread. Initial reports said fire engulfed the ferry in one swift explosion.