A cargo ship with approximately 3,000 automobiles on board caught fire on Wednesday off the coast of the Netherlands, killing one crew member and wounding several others, according to the coastguard.

Image credits: Reuters

Several members of the crew had to jump overboard after a fire broke out on the Panama-registered 199-metre (655-foot) Fremantle Highway as it was sailing from Germany to Egypt on Tuesday night.

In a social media post, the Indian Embassy in the Netherlands stated that it was in contact with the family of the deceased and that the fire had led to the death of an Indian crewmember. The ship’s owner, Japan’s Shoei Kisen, claimed that all 21 members of the crew were Indian.

The Wadden Sea, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is regarded as one of the most significant places for migratory birds in the world, lies 27 kilometres north of the Dutch island of Ameland, and images show grey smoke emanating from the ship amid fears the vessel could sink, according to the sources.

Rescue ships are dumping water onto the Panamanian-registered Fremantle Highway as smoke is pouring off of it. 17 miles to the west of the Dutch island of Ameland, the incident is taking place.

According to sources, the 652-foot ship was transporting 2857 cars, including 25 electric vehicles, from Germany to Egypt. According to the Dutch Coast Guard’s initial reports, the fire was started by an electric vehicle. Later, it was modified to read that the fire’s origin could not be found.

The Cargo ship was carrying BMWs and Mercedes-

Nearly 3,800 automobiles, some of which were produced by BMW and Mercedez-Benz, were on board the ship that was twice the length of a football field and was headed for Singapore. Among the shipment were electric automobiles and construction equipment.

Image credits: Telegraph India

An Italian cargo ship carrying 1200 new and used vehicles that had moored at the Port of Newark, New Jersey, earlier this month caught fire and burned for days. Twenty others were hurt as twenty firefighters lost their lives battling the fire.

The Felicity Ace, a vehicle carrier, caught fire in February 2022 in the middle of the Atlantic. The fire continued for days before the ship finally sank as it was being hauled back to port. Several decks of the Felicity Ace were affected by the fire, several of which were home to electric vehicles with lithium-ion batteries. 

Since 2002, there have been 10 significant occurrences using car carriers, or one every two and a half years on average.

The 23 crew members on board the ship, which was flying the Panamanian flag, made an effort to put out the fire on their own, but it spread too quickly. The Dutch News said that although specialized firefighters were dispatched from Rotterdam, the situation was already too perilous when they arrived.

Seven members of the crew dived into the water, where they were rescued by nearby ships. Helicopters were used to rescue the remaining crew members. It stated that it is unclear how the deceased was slain.

The authorities’ current efforts are concentrated on stopping the ship from sinking. The Fremantle Highway was able to be roped off by a tugboat from the Wadden Island water taxi company Rederij Noordgat, preventing it from drifting into shipping lanes.