A coordinated effort by the Indian Coast Guard (ICG), the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force (IAF) has been underway to manage a major fire aboard the Singapore-flagged container vessel MV Wan Hai 503, which broke out off the coast of Kerala on June 9, 2025. The high-risk operation aimed to stabilize the vessel and tow it away from the Indian coastline, mitigating a potential ecological disaster.
The MV Wan Hai 503, en route from Colombo to Mumbai, reported multiple explosions followed by a fire approximately 88 nautical miles from Beypore, Kerala. The vessel was carrying 2,128 metric tons of fuel and hundreds of containers, including 143 with cargo deemed dangerous under the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code, such as flammable liquids, toxic substances, and solid hazardous materials. The incident posed a significant threat to the marine environment and regional shipping routes.
The Indian Coast Guard immediately launched a large-scale response, deploying multiple ships including Saksham, Samarth, Vikram, Rajdoot, Kasturba Gandhi, Arnvesh and Samudra Prahari, along with Dornier aircraft and helicopters, to combat the blaze. The Indian Navy also joined the operation, contributing resources and expertise to the firefighting and rescue efforts. Initial efforts focused on rescuing the 22 crew members, comprising Chinese, Taiwanese, Myanmarese, and Indonesian nationals. Eighteen crew members were successfully rescued by the ICG and Navy, while a search and rescue operation continues for the four missing crew members.
The firefighting operation faced numerous challenges, including unfavorable weather conditions and the presence of hazardous materials. Despite these obstacles, the ICG managed to significantly reduce visible flames. An aerial firefighting operation was launched with a helicopter from the Indian Air Force, which dispersed 1,000 kilograms of dry chemical powder onto the core fire areas of the ship. Salvage team members were winched onto the burning vessel to help with the towing operation.
A key aspect of the operation was preventing the burning vessel from drifting closer to the coast. The ICG successfully established a towline from the vessel to a coast guard ship to control its drift. To enhance towing capabilities, authorities worked to establish a second towline with Offshore Warrior, a more powerful offshore supply ship.
On June 13, 2025, a significant milestone was achieved when the tow of the distressed container vessel was successfully transferred to the ocean-going tug Offshore Warrior. A Navy Sea King helicopter from Kochi winched salvage team members onto the vessel amidst challenging weather conditions to connect a 600-meter tow rope to Offshore Warrior. The vessel is now being towed westward at a speed of 1.8 knots and is nearly 35 nautical miles offshore. Three ICG Offshore Patrol Vessels are escorting the container ship and sustaining firefighting operations.
The ICG is closely coordinating with the Directorate General of Shipping to ensure the vessel remains at least 50 nautical miles from the Indian coastline until a suitable plan is decided by the owners, adhering to international practices. With the arrival of additional firefighting tugs, the situation is expected to stabilize further. Currently, only thick smoke and a few isolated hotspots remain onboard, a testament to the ICG's effective firefighting efforts.
