Efforts are ongoing by the Indian Coast Guard to extinguish a blaze on the MV Wan Hai 503, a Singapore-flagged cargo ship that caught fire in the Arabian Sea close to Kerala’s shoreline.
The vessel, en route from Colombo to Mumbai, suffered a massive onboard fire after an internal container explosion on Monday.
While 18 of the 22 crew members were successfully rescued, four remain unaccounted for.
Singapore has dispatched a team to assist in the search and recovery mission.
India’s National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) has issued a coastal warning over potential threats of oil spills and drifting cargo along Kerala’s coast.
The vessel was reportedly carrying around 100 tonnes of bunker oil, according to Mathrubhumi News.
Visuals released on Tuesday showed thick smoke pouring from the ship as naval and coast guard personnel battled the fire.
Authorities confirmed that sporadic explosions are still occurring on board.
The rescued crew had reportedly escaped in a lifeboat after the fire broke out and were later picked up by naval teams.
The four missing crew members include nationals from Taiwan, Myanmar, and Indonesia, according to Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority (MPA).
Kerala’s Minister for Ports, VN Vasavan, stated that about 50 containers had fallen into the sea, posing environmental risks.
INCOIS noted that the debris could approach Kerala’s coast within the next few days.
This incident follows a similar maritime emergency three weeks ago, when a Liberian-registered ship sank off Kerala with hazardous cargo, prompting a temporary fishing ban and government compensation for affected coastal communities.