Officials said that out of the 24 crew members on board, 21 were rescued, while three remained onboard as per instructions from the company.
A cargo ship sank off the Kerala coast as it tilted further and lost containers into the sea, triggering environmental damage concerns, even as three remaining crew members were rescued. The three had remained onboard the Liberian-flagged MSC Elsa 3 as per instructions from their company.
The authorities earlier rescued 21 out of the 24 crew members on board, including one Russian, 20 Filipinos, two Ukrainians, and one Georgian.
MSC Elsa 3’s parent company informed Indian authorities that it was tilting by 26 degrees and sought urgent assistance hours after the 184-metre ship departed for Kochi from Vizhinjam port on Friday.
Coast Guard inspector general (Western region) Bhisham Sharma said they thought the ship would stablise but water ingress sank it. He added that the Indian Navy ship INS Sujata saved the remaining three crew members. “All crew remain safe and Coast Guard is assessing the situation and issuing an advisory to state authorities.”
He added that containers from the ship were floating around and could cause great danger to other ships. “These containers can come ashore,” Sharma said. He added that the Kerala chief secretary was convening a meeting to assess the danger of the containers.
The Coast Guard coordinated rescue operations by maintaining ships and aircraft near the distressed vessel. In a statement, it added that MSC Elsa 3 departed Vizhinjam Port on Friday and was to reach Kochi on Saturday. The 640 containers onboard included 13 hazardous cargoes. Twelve of the containers carried calcium carbide. The ship’s tanks had 84.44 metric tonnes of diesel.
The Coast Guard said that the sensitive coast of Kerala is home to biodiversity and a major tourist attraction. “The Coast Guard has geared up pollution response preparedness and coordination with the state administration for all possible scenarios,” said the statement. It added that aircraft with advanced oil spill mapping technology were assessing the situation. “Presently, no oil spill has been reported,’’ the Coast Guard said.
A defense spokesperson said on Sunday morning that INS Sujata recovered the three crew members under dangerous circumstances. He added that INS Sujata remained stationed near the submerged vessel as another ship of the Liberian company arrived for assistance.
The spokesperson said the Coast Guard spearheaded the rescue operation, and the Indian Navy ships monitored the situation. He added that an assessment was underway to determine whether the ship can be towed.
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) has warned the public against touching cargo containers or oil spills that may wash ashore. It asked people to immediately inform police if they spot them. KSDMA said there is a possibility that cargo, including containers and oil, may wash ashore and that oil films could appear along parts of the coast.
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