18 crew members of cargo ship Wan Hai 503 transferred to INS Surat; fire is out of control, rescue operations to continue through night

KOCHI: The crew members of the cargo ship Wan Hai 503, which caught fire off the coast of Kerala in the outer sea, have been transferred to the Indian Navy's INS Surat. The vessel, carrying 18 rescued crew members, is en route to Mangaluru and is expected to reach the port by around 10 pm. Upon arrival, the rescued individuals will be shifted to a hospital for medical attention.

Meanwhile, two Coast Guard ships are continuing the search for the four crew members who remain missing. The search operations will continue through the night. At the same time, the Coast Guard stated that the fire on the ship remains out of control. According to reports, the ship was carrying a total of 620 containers. Several of these containers fell into the sea following the fire. It is believed that the containers included substances in both liquid and solid form that could potentially cause explosions.

The Singapore-flagged cargo ship was travelling from Colombo to Navi Mumbai when the explosion took place at around 9.30 am. According to reports, the blast occurred in the ship's lower deck. The fire had spread to more containers by around 12.40 pm.