A fire caused by a short circuit led to explosions and the missing of a Filipino seaman.
A fire has broken out on the container ship Maersk Frankfurt near the Karwar region of Karnataka, India. The fire was reported around 2:30 p.m. local time on Friday, 19 July.
The story is developing
According to local media, a fire caused by a short circuit led to explosions and the missing of a Filipino seaman. The Maersk Frankfurt has a crew of 21 members: 17 Filipinos, two Ukrainians, one Russian, and one Montenegrin.
20 containers are on fire
The ship is located approximately 102 nautical miles southwest of Goa.
Local media reports indicate that the crew attempted to extinguish the fire but were unsuccessful. The fire rapidly spread on deck, causing containers to explode. Initial reports indicate that 20 containers are on fire.
Indian Coast Guard (ICG)
On Saturday morning, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) reported on X that three ICG ships had been fighting the fire for over 12 hours. As of 7:00 a.m. local time, 20 July, the vessel is 6.5 nautical miles south of Karwar, with ICG aircraft conducting aerial assessments. An additional aircraft from Kochi is positioned for SAR.
Two ICG ships
Initially, two ICG ships were dispatched from Goa to combat the fire with an ICG aircraft also deployed for an aerial assessment of the distressed vessel.
Dramatic visuals reveal intense flames on the container ship as the ICG ships work to extinguish the fire with water. ICG said explosions have been occurring on the front part of the vessel.
Goods (IMDG)
The vessel, reportedly carrying International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) cargo, is facing challenging firefighting efforts due to adverse weather conditions and heavy rain, as reported by ANI.
The 255-meter-long vessel, built in 2024, departed Mundra, India on July 17 and was scheduled to reach Colombo, Sri Lanka, on July 21.
Maersk Frankfurt
The 5,920 TEU Maersk Frankfurt was delivered to its Japanese owners by Imabari Shipbuilding in May. It is managed by Bernard Schulte and is operating under a time charter to Maersk.
Maersk on X confirmed the incident, stating: “We can confirm that a fire was reported onboard one of our time chartered vessels, Maersk Frankfurt, around 14:30 IST while the vessel was sailing from Mundra to Colombo.
Safety of the crew
Firefighting is underway with support from the Indian Coast Guard. The vessel is in stable condition. At the moment, we are unable to confirm the extent of the fire’s impact on the chartered vessel, Maersk Frankfurt. We are in constant touch with the vessel owner and ship managers. The safety of the crew remains the top priority at this moment.”
@IndiaCoastGuard MRCC #Mumbai received distress call on 19 Jul 24 from container carrier MV Maersk Frankfurt 50 NM off #Karwar regarding major #fire onboard. #ICG #Dornier & Ships Sachet, Sujeet and Samrat pressed into action. #ALH and additional aircraft being mobilized to… pic.twitter.com/b6JKlY2f75
— Indian Coast Guard (@IndiaCoastGuard) July 19, 2024
Source : World Csrgo News
