The MV Wan Hai 503, a 270 metre Singapore-flagged container ship, caught fire after an explosion while she was sailing off the coast of Kerala in Southern Indian on Monday, 9 June.
The vessel, bound for Mumbai from Sri Lanka, was approximately 78 nautical miles off the coast when the explosion occurred. The blaze erupted at about 10:30 am local time, causing black plumes visible for miles.
The Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Navy swiftly responded to the scene of the fire aboard the MV Wan Hai 503, which was carrying 22 crew members.
The crew abandoned ship in lifeboats after the initial explosion and 18 were rescued, although two sustained serious injuries. Four crew members – two Taiwanese, one Indonesian and one Myanmar national – are still missing.
The INS Surat was routed to the scene, supported by multiple Indian Coast Guard ships and Dornier reconnaissance aircraft.
According to the Times of India, the vessel’s cargo manifest revealed that the ship was transporting 157 containers loaded with dangerous goods, including flammable liquids, solids, spontaneously combustible materials, toxic pesticides, lithium batteries, solvents and organometallic compounds.
The fire’s intensity caused multiple containers to collapse or fall overboard with unconfirmed reports at this stage indicating that at least 20 containers were lost in the disaster, raising serious concerns about marine pollution in the Arabian Sea.
India’s Directorate General of Shipping has instructed the owners of the vessel to engage specialist salvors and maintain frequent updates regarding the salvage operation.
India’s coastal authorities in Kozhikode, Kannur and Ernakulam are preparing emergency medical services and pollution-response teams.
