MOL Comfort still burning

JULY 9, 2013 — The fire that broke out July 6 at the rear end of the remaining section of MOL Comfort was still burning as of 0030 UTC (0930 JST) today says owner Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) in its latest update.

Twitter photo posted by J.S. (Jan) Bakker

The five year old containership broke into two parts June 17 when the vessel encountered heavy weather in the Indian Ocean. Salvage efforts have been underway since then, but the aft section of the ship sank under tow June 26.

The remaining section is under tow and one tug boat and two rescue boats have been responding to the fire. The Indian Coast Guard vessel Samudra Prahari, with an external fire fighting system, arrived at the scene around 0030 UTC on July 8, and immediately joined the fire fighting.

“However, due to adverse weather, the work has not been progressing smoothly and the fire is not yet under control,” says MOL. “Observations show that many containers on the deck have been burnt out.”