A cargo ship caught fire off the Dutch coast, carrying almost 3,000 vehicles, resulting in the tragic death of one crew member and injuries to several others, as reported by the coastguard.

The incident occurred on Tuesday night aboard the 199-meter (655-foot) Panama-registered vessel named Fremantle Highway while it was en route from Germany to Egypt.

Faced with the raging flames, some crew members were compelled to jump overboard to save themselves.

According to the Indian Embassy in the Netherlands, all crew members on board were Indian nationals. The fire’s impact was severe, leading to the loss of life and injuries among the crew.

The authorities were in touch with the family of the deceased seafarer, Reuters has reported.

To control the fire, rescue ships utilized water spray, but excessive water use posed a risk of the ship sinking. Consequently, the vessel was tethered to a salvage vessel to prevent it from drifting.

The fire’s intensity was such that it might take several days to extinguish, as stated by the Dutch news agency ANP, citing the coastguard. The ship continued to emit smoke near the northern Dutch island of Ameland.

Edwin Versteeg, a spokesperson for the Dutch Department of Waterways and Public Works, commented that the fire remained challenging to manage, possibly due to the cargo the ship was carrying.

The exact cause of the fire was still unknown, though a coastguard spokesperson had earlier mentioned that it began near an electric car. Notably, around 25 out of the 2,857 vehicles on the ship were electric.

In light of the increasing number of fires on cargo ships involving electric vehicles, the International Maritime Organization, responsible for safety standards at sea, plans to evaluate new measures for ships transporting such vehicles in the coming year.

Written by staff