KOCHI: Eight days after the accident, the police have registered a case against the Singapore cargo ship Wan Hai 503, which exploded and caught fire. The Fort Kochi Coastal Police registered a case at 3 pm yesterday on the complaint filed by Fishermen's Federation (CITU) state committee member V.P. Suneesh.

The first accused is the shipping company Wan Hai Lines. The other accused are the captain and 18 crew members. The charges include reckless sailing, causing obstruction and danger to the shipping lane, and careless handling of toxic and flammable materials. The same charges were filed against the recently sunk Elsa 3.

The Fort Kochi Coastal Police recorded the complainant's statement. The statements of the captain and crew members, who live in Mangaluru, will be recorded. The ship, which was en route from Colombo, Sri Lanka to the Nhava Sheva port in Mumbai, caught fire on the 9th of this month, 44 nautical miles (81.5 km) off Kannur Azhikkal.

FIR states

• The ship was driven carelessly in a manner that caused danger despite knowing that it was carrying flammable cargo, explosives and chemicals

• Fuel, other oils and containers fell into the sea following the fire

• The chemicals in the containers adversely affected the ecosystem, living creatures and the environment in the sea and on land

• The floating containers that fell into the sea created obstacles for fishing and other ships

Passports seized

The Coastal Police has seized the passports of the captain and five crew members of the cargo ship MSC Elsa 3 that sank in the waters off Kochi. The action is to prevent them from leaving the country. Employees infected with Covid are in quarantine.