(Reuters) -The Indian Coast Guard on Wednesday was attempting to tow a cargo ship that caught fire off the coast of the southern state of Kerala containing hazardous cargo to prevent a potential ecological disaster, India’s defense ministry said in a statement.
The Singaporean-container vessel MV Wan Hai 503 is carrying 120,000 metric tons of fuel and hundreds of containers, including hazardous cargo, the ministry said.
The vessel, which was bound for India’s financial capital Mumbai, met with an accident about 144 km (90 miles) off the coast of the southern Indian state of Kerala on Monday, leading to multiple explosions and fires erupting on the ship and causing 40 containers to fall into the Arabian Sea.
Firefighting efforts have significantly reduced visible flames, but the fire remains active in the inner decks and near fuel tanks, the defence ministry said.
“With the fire yet to be fully extinguished, efforts to establish a towline and pull the vessel away from the coast are underway to prevent a potential ecological disaster,” the Ministry of Defence said in the statement.
Last month, a container vessel sank in another accident off the Kerala coast, releasing 100 cargo containers into the Arabian Sea, and leaving authorities in the state scrambling to contain an oil spill.
That vessel, owned by Cyprus-based MSC Shipmanagement, was carrying 640 containers, including 13 with “hazardous cargo” and 12 with calcium carbide.
(Reporting by Chandni Shah in Bengaluru)
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