Container ship sinks off Kerala coast, navy rescues all crew

Vessel was carrying containers with hazardous cargo including sulphur, reveal reports; coastal residents urged to stay at least 200 metres away from any unfamiliar objects or containers found washed ashore

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Despite best efforts of the Indian Navy, Coast Guard, and the shipping firm, the container vessel MSC Elsa 3, which had reported listing around 38 nautical miles off the Kochi coast, sank into the Arabian Sea on Sunday morning.

Indian Navy and Coast Guard sources confirmed that the vessel listed further and eventually capsized on Sunday morning.

All the 24 crew members aboard the vessel were rescued.

Of these, 21 were saved by the Navy and Coast Guard on Saturday evening and the remaining three, the captain, chief engineer, and second engineer, were brought to safety by the Navy on Sunday morning.

The 21 crew members rescued earlier have been shifted to the Coast Guard headquarters in Kochi, while the captain and two engineers were taken to the Kochi Naval Base.

According to reports, the vessel was carrying 148 containers, some of which may drift toward the Kerala coast due to the influence of the monsoon currents.

The vessel, which was transporting containers with hazardous cargo, had listed approximately 26 degrees to the starboard side by Saturday afternoon.