Oil spill alert as burning ship tilts, hazardous cargo at risk

OCEAN AGENCY WARNS OF OIL, DRIFTING CONTAINERS ALONG KERALA COAST

- BY STEPHEN N. R.

Indian authorities have issued a warning of a potential oil spill along Kerala's coastline after a Singapore-flagged container ship carrying 100 tonnes of polluting bunker oil caught fire, off the coast of Beypore.

The blaze, which began on Monday, is still raging, and the 268-metre vessel has started tilting to its port side, raising concerns about a widespread environmental disaster, The Indian Express said.

COASTGUARD BATTLES TO STOP BLAZE

The coastguard said yesterday it was battling to stop the fierce blaze. The 268-metre container vessel, MV Wan Hai 503, carrying 22 crew members caught fire, some 78 nautical miles off India's Beypore port on Monday.

Indian Coast Guard said yesterday that “fires and explosions persist” on the vessel.

The