The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) reported on Saturday that three of its ships have been battling a fire on a merchant vessel off the coast of Karwar, Karnataka, for the past 12 hours. The ships Sujeet, Sachet, and Samrat have been engaged in firefighting efforts on the cargo vessel, located 6.5 nautical miles south of Karwar.
The vessel, which was carrying hazardous material, caught fire approximately 102 nautical miles southwest of Goa on Friday. On Saturday morning, the ICG updated via its X handle, stating, “Ships Sujeet, Sachet, and Samrat have been fighting the fire for over 12 hours, preventing its spread. As of 0700 hrs, 20 Jul, the vessel is 6.5 NM south of Karwar.” An ICG Dornier aircraft is conducting aerial assessments, and an additional aircraft from Kochi has been positioned for search and rescue operations.
The emergency towing vessel (ETV) Water Lily also departed Mumbai on 19 July and is expected to arrive at the scene by 21 July.
The merchant vessel, en route from Mundra to Colombo, was carrying “International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) cargo,” and explosions have been occurring in its forward section, according to the ICG, on Friday.