After three days of sustained firefighting, the Coast Guard said the massive blaze on the Singapore-flagged vessel M V Wan Hai-503 has been considerably contained.
The Coast Guard said its ship deployed a three-member team comprising divers and salvors in a Chetak helicopter to the deck of the vessel. It said they successfully secured the towing hawser (a rope or cable used to tow vessels) on the ship, connecting it to the Coast Guard ship Samudra Prahari, which now contains its movement. This prevents the ill-fated container ship from drifting to the coast.
Once two or three tow lines are placed, it will be handed over to tug boats, which will pull the vessel away from the coast. The Coast Guard said the salvors were from the Marine Emergency Response Centre of Vishwakarma Mechanical Works, Gujarat.
“The container vessel continues to drift approximately 42 nautical miles off Beypore in Kerala within the exclusive economic zone of the country. The ship, which is carrying 2,128 MT of fuel and hazardous cargo, still poses an environmental risk. The Coast Guard, with air and sea assets, has largely contained the fire. Inner decks still burn. Salvors winched onboard to aid towing. Unfavourable seas persist. Focus remains on extinguishing the blaze and preventing a marine disaster,’’ the Coast Guard posted on X. Kerala Disaster Management Authority member Secretary Shekhar Kuriakose said securing the towing hawser on a burning ship is “a significant achievement.”
Four Coast Guard ships — Samudra Prahari, Sachet, Vikram, and Samarth — with helicopters, are positioned around the vessel for firefighting and coordinating pollution response in case of any oil or chemical spill. Residual smoke is still visible from the distressed vessel. Ships Arnvesh, Rajdoot and Kasturba Gandhi are undertaking search operations for the 4 missing crew of the vessel.
An official communication said, about 24 containers had fallen off the vessel and are likely floating or have sunk. The Single Point Mooring owned by Bharat Petroleum has been asked to keep a close watch to deflect any floating containers to prevent damage to the installation.
