In a harrowing mid-sea incident off the coast of Kerala, the Indian Navy and Mumbai Coast Guard executed a successful rescue operation to evacuate 18 crew members from the Singapore-flagged cargo vessel MV Wan Hai 503, which experienced a fire and explosion on June 9, while en route from Colombo to Nhava Sheva port near Mumbai.
The cargo ship, measuring 270 meters, had set sail from Colombo on June 7 with a total of 22 crew members. Among them were 14 Chinese nationals, including six from Taiwan. Currently, four crew members remain unaccounted for following the incident.
The fire ignited early Monday morning, approximately 44 nautical miles off Azhikkal, prompting a rapid response from the Indian Coast Guard. Three ships were diverted to the scene—the ICGS Rajdoot from New Mangalore, ICGS Arnvesh from Kochi, and ICGS Sachet from Agatti. In addition, two Dornier aircraft were deployed for aerial surveillance, and five ICG vessels, equipped for firefighting and pollution control, were mobilized to assist with the operation.
INS Surat facilitated the evacuation of the injured crew, transporting them to the New Mangalore Port Authority berth at Panambur before they were taken to AJ Hospital in Kuntikana for further treatment. Despite control measures implemented on the forward bay blaze by the Coast Guard, officials reported that the vessel was listing 10 to 15 degrees to port, and multiple containers had fallen overboard. Continuous fires and explosions were still affecting parts of the ship, leading to ongoing emergency operations.
Following the successful evacuation, the Chinese embassy in India extended its gratitude towards the Indian authorities for their swift and effective rescue efforts. Yu Jing, spokesperson for the embassy, expressed appreciation on the social media platform X, voicing hopes for a successful continuation of search operations and a swift recovery for the injured crew members.
