Cargo ship towed to Singapore after fire: Sri Lankan navy
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Smoke billowing from the Liberia-registered MSC Messina last Friday after a fire broke out, some 425 nautical miles from Port Blair in India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
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COLOMBO • A container ship left adrift in the Indian Ocean after an engine room fire was being towed to Singapore on Saturday, Sri Lanka's navy said.
The Indian Coast Guard helped extinguish the blaze after it erupted aboard the MSC Messina last Friday about 425 nautical miles from Port Blair in India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
"We were informed that the fire was completely doused by this afternoon and the ship is being towed to Singapore," Sri Lanka Navy spokesman Indika de Silva said.
One of the 28 crew members remains missing after the fire.
The Sri Lankan navy helped coordinate communications with the stricken ship and other vessels in the area.
The Liberia-registered MSC Messina left a Colombo port last Wednesday en route to Singapore and reported the fire halfway to the Malacca Strait.
It is the second ship to catch fire in the Indian Ocean in recent weeks, with the Singapore-registered cargo ship X-Press Pearl going up in flames last month and then sinking off Colombo.
The X-Press Pearl was carrying large quantities of chemicals and plastics and the accident has caused extensive damage to Sri Lanka's marine ecosystem.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
