Explosions, fires on S’pore-registered cargo ship off India’s Kerala coast; no S’poreans on board
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Pictures and videos show a thick plume of black smoke rising from the Singapore-registered ship.
PHOTO: INDIAN COAST GUARD/X
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KOCHI - Multiple explosions and fires erupted on a Singapore-flagged cargo ship bound for India’s financial capital Mumbai on June 9, causing 40 containers to fall into the Arabian Sea and forcing several crew members to jump overboard to escape the flames, officials said.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said it had been informed about a fire on board the ship, which occurred at around 12.30pm (Singapore time), approximately 80km south-west of Azhikkal in Kerala, India.
No Singaporeans were on board container vessel Wan Hai 503, managed by Wan Hai Lines (Singapore), the authority said in a statement on June 9 at 6pm.
In an update at around 9.30pm, MPA said that four out of the ship’s 22 crew members remain missing.
Two of them are from Taiwan, one is from Myanmar, and the other is from Indonesia, it added.
Eighteen crew members from the vessel were safely transferred from lifeboats to an Indian Navy ship, which is currently en route to New Mangalore Port.
Of the 18, five are reported to have sustained injuries and are receiving medical treatment on board the Indian Navy ship.
As at 8.30pm (Singapore time), three vessels had been deployed by the Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Navy to support the ongoing search and rescue efforts, along with aircraft.
MPA added that its team is also en route to lend support to the Indian authorities.
Pictures and videos shared by the Indian Coast Guard on social media platform X showed a thick plume of black smoke rising from the ship, and some containers lying open and in disarray near the point where the smoke was escaping.
“Vessel is presently on fire and adrift,” a Defence Ministry public relations officer said on X.
Officials did not disclose the nature of the cargo in the containers, nor what caused the explosions.
MPA said it is in close contact with the vessel’s management company to provide support and is monitoring the situation closely. It will be investigating the incident, it added.
A container vessel sank in another accident off Kerala in May, releasing 100 cargo containers into the Arabian Sea. The directorate-general of shipping said on June 6 there were no reports of oil pollution because of that incident. REUTERS, AFP
Additional reporting by Vihanya Rakshika
