Liberian cargo ship sinks off Kochi, major oil leak triggers state alert

Kochi: Liberian cargo ship MSC ELSA 3, carrying 643 containers, including 13 with hazardous cargo, capsized in the sea off Kochi early on Sunday. The incident led to a major oil leak, and the state govt has sounded a statewide alert.

The ship sank about 14.6 nautical miles from Thottappally harbour around 7.50 am. Before this, naval vessel INS Sujatha rescued the three senior crew members — captain, chief engineer and second engineer — who remained aboard overnight to assist with salvaging operations. The Indian Coast Guard earlier rescued 21 crew members.

The ICG said it was monitoring the situation closely and was fully prepared to respond to any emergency. It received information regarding the distress conditions onboard MSC ELSA 3, approximately 38 nautical miles from Kochi, around 1.25pm on Saturday. The shipping company, which could not establish communication with the vessel, requested ICG assistance to ensure the safety of the crew members. The reason for the listing is yet to be ascertained.

A meeting chaired by chief secretary A Jayathilak confirmed a significant oil leak from the vessel and issued a statewide alert. An official note issued after the meeting said the leaked fuel was drifting at a speed of approximately three kilometres per hour, posing serious environmental and navigational threats.

"A Dornier aircraft that sprays dispersant to break up the oil has been deployed. The Director General of the Coast Guard, who heads the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan, is directly overseeing response efforts," it said.

All coastal local self-govt bodies have been asked to warn the public not to approach or touch any unusual objects or containers that wash ashore. People are advised to maintain a distance of at least 200 metres and to report such sightings to the emergency number 112, the note said.

"Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea due to safety concerns, and fishing activities are strictly prohibited within a 20-nautical-mile radius of the sunken vessel," it said.

The 184-metre-long container vessel sailed from Vizhinjam port near Thiruvananthapuram on May 23 for Kochi, with a scheduled entry on Saturday. It developed a significant list to the starboard side en route to Kochi. Besides ICG Dornier aircraft and ship Arnvesh, two merchant vessels in the vicinity, MV Han Yi and MSC Silver 2, also participated in the rescue. INS Sujata joined the operation on Sunday.

Apart from the senior officers, the crew included 20 Philippines nationals. A customs statement said 73 of the containers that sank were empty, while some carried Calcium Carbide, a chemical that reacts violently with water to release highly flammable acetylene gas. The ship had in its tanks 84.44 MT of diesel and 367.1 MT of furnace oil.