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4 crew members still missing 2 days after S'pore-registered cargo ship catches fire off Indian coast
There were no Singaporeans onboard.
June 11, 2025, 02:30 PM
Four crew members remain missing after a fire broke out on a Singapore-registered cargo ship on Jun. 9 in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Kerala, India.
The BBC reported that the cargo ship Wan Hai 503, operated by Taiwan-based container shipping company Wan Hai Lines, was en route to Mumbai, India, from Colombo, Sri Lanka.
An internal container reportedly exploded, triggering a fire on board.
Videos and photos published by Indian Coast Guard on X showed the Indian Navy and Coast Guard dosing the ship with water as smoke billowed from it.
— Indian Coast Guard (@IndiaCoastGuard) June 10, 2025
18 of 22 crew members rescued; four still missing
Updates provided by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) reported that as of Jun. 10, fire-fighting and search and rescue operations were ongoing, supported by aerial surveillance.
18 of the ship’s 22 crew members were rescued and safely arrived at New Mangalore Port in India.
The MPA noted that there were no Singaporeans onboard.
Four crew members, comprising two from Taiwan, one from Myanmar and one from Indonesia, remain unaccounted for.
A total of six injured crew members were sent to a medical facility, with three already discharged.
Challenging rescue
According to The Hindu, a former Shipping Secretary highlighted that the main challenge of the rescue was that the ship was tilted about 10 to 15 degrees on one side.
Additionally, prevailing monsoon weather is said to make the fire difficult to contain.
The MPA, which has deployed a team to support the Indian authorities, said that it is monitoring the situation in close coordination with them, helping to assess the ship’s structural integrity and the accident’s possible environmental impact.
