Reuters July 2024
The Indian Coast Guard has been tackling a significant cargo fire onboard the Maersk Frankfurt, a newbuild containership chartered to Danish carrier Maersk, in the Arabian Sea.
The 2024-built, 5,500 TEU Maersk Frankfurt reported explosions and a fire on its front deck on Friday while sailing off Karwar, India. The vessel was en route to Colombo, Sri Lanka when the incident occurred.
Maersk confirmed the occurrence in a statement on social media platform X, indicating that the vessel is currently in a “stable condition.” However, the extent of the fire’s impact is yet to be fully determined.
Multiple resources have been deployed as efforts continue to ensure the safety of both the ship and its crew.
In the most recent update, the Indian Coast Guard stated that three firefighting vessels have been working for 12 hours to prevent the blaze from spreading. An additional vessel has been deployed and is expected to join the operation by Sunday.
The Coast Guard has also mobilized its Dornier aircraft to conduct aerial assessments of the situation. An additional aircraft is in place for search and rescue operations if required.
The Maersk Frankfurt, an Imabari-built unit delivered in June, is owned by Tokei Kaiun of Japan and managed by a Hong Kong unit of Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, according to Equasis data.
Local media reports that the vessel is carrying cargo that is included in the list of International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) cargoes. However, Maersk emphasized that the crew’s safety is the top priority. As of now, no casualties have been reported.
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