Fire Containment Operation Successfully Ongoing on Merchant Ship Off Karwar Coast

A major fire on the MV Maersk Frankfurt off the Karwar coast has been doused, with continued efforts to keep the vessel away from the coastline to prevent environmental damage. The ship, carrying dangerous cargo, caught fire en route from Mundra, Gujarat, to Colombo, Sri Lanka. One crew member has died.

A major fire that broke out on July 19 on a merchant navy ship off the Karwar coast has been doused. Efforts are underway to keep the affected vessel in deep sea due to the grave threat posed to the coastline, the Coast Guard said on Tuesday.

The vessel, currently 13 nautical miles west of New Mangalore, is heading towards the open sea, according to the Indian Coast Guard (ICG). The MV Maersk Frankfurt, carrying 1,154 containers including hazardous materials, caught fire 102 nautical miles off the coast of Goa while en route from Mundra in Gujarat to Colombo in Sri Lanka. One crew member died in the blaze, a Coast Guard official said.

The ICG has facilitated the embarkation of an initial team comprising one Indian and three Filipinos. Due to the sustained efforts of ICG ships, the major fire has been doused. However, minor fires continue to flare due to the content of the containers.

ICGS Samudra Prahari and ICGS Sachet are currently combating the small fires on the ship. Considering the grave threat to the Indian coastline, all efforts are made to maintain the vessel in deeper sea areas. Operations have continued for five days, battling extreme weather conditions to ensure the safety of the vessel and her crew.

The ICG's efforts are being supported by Albattros 5, an OSV charted by the ship managers, and Emergency Towing Vessel (ETV) Water Lily. Aerial assessments are being conducted when necessary. The ship manager, Bernhard Schulte Ship Management (Hong Kong) Ltd, has contracted M/s SMIT Salvors for ongoing salvage operations. The salvage team has requested the ICG's presence to combat the fire reflash until the arrival of two Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS) vessels from abroad. The first vessel is expected by July 23 evening, and the second by July 28.

Firefighting onboard container vessels is a significant challenge for the global maritime community. The ICG emphasizes that fire inside containers requires close intervention to be completely extinguished.

(With inputs from agencies.)