Ship on fire: Thai national succumbs to injuries, Indian among two critical

A Thai national died, while an Indian and a Filipino are critical after being rescued from the merchant ship, Maersk Honam, that caught fire in the Arabian Sea, about 800 nautical miles off Mumbai. “One of the 23 rescued crew members died due to inhalation of fumes, the Times of India reported. 

The ALS Ceres merchant ship, which rescued the crew, has diverted its route to Kochi, instead of Colombo, with the other survivors on Thursday,” Malini Shankar, director general of shipping, told TOI.
A thick plume of toxic fumes was seen emanating from the ship on Wednesday even as high temperatures melted the containers on board.

An Indian Coast Guard (ICG) official from Mumbai said, “The fire is raging through the forward portion of the 330m-long container ship and is slowly spreading towards the bridge of the ship. Thick plumes of toxic fumes are seen emanating from the ship. The high temperatures have melted the containers on board. Reports suggest that the ship was carrying a cargo of dangerous goods and chemicals.” Firefighting operations will continue on Friday.

MV Maersk Honam had left Singapore on March 1 and was traveling to Suez. It was 340 nautical miles from Agatti in Lakshwadeep Islands when an explosion took place around 8.40pm on Tuesday. Twenty-three of the 27 crew members were rescued by ALS Ceres, which was diverted to the spot by the Mumbai-based Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre of the ICG after getting a distress call around 9.45pm. Search is still on for the four missing crew members, including second cook Sakim Hegde, an Indian, and two Filipinos.