A Singapore-flagged container ship caught fire approximately 144 km off the coast of Beypore in Kerala, triggering a joint rescue and firefighting operation by the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard (ICG), a spokesperson from the Ministry of Defence in Kochi confirmed on Monday.
The fire was reported on board the container vessel MV Wan Hai 503, about 78 nautical miles from Beypore in Kozhikode district, according to a post by the defence ministry on social media platform ‘X’.
A Reuters report indicated that the fire was caused by multiple explosions, resulting in nearly 40 containers falling into the Arabian Sea. Several crew members were forced to jump overboard to escape the flames.
“Preliminary reports suggest that 22 crew members were onboard at the time. Eighteen of them jumped into the sea and are currently in rescue boats. Efforts are ongoing to retrieve them,” said Shekhar Kuriakose, Secretary of the Kerala Disaster Management Authority. He added that the vessel is not “currently sinking.”
Of the 22 crew members, 18 have abandoned the ship using lifeboats, while the remaining four are reportedly missing.
The Navy has redirected INS Surat and launched a Dornier aircraft sortie from INS Garuda. Meanwhile, the ICG has mobilised multiple assets, including a CG Dornier aircraft, to assist in rescue and damage assessment.
“The vessel is still on fire and drifting,” the ministry’s statement concluded.
