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A large cargo ship with a fire in its hold is being kept 2 miles offshore of an Alaska port as a precaution while efforts are undertaken to extinguish the flames, the U.S. Coast Guard said Saturday.
The ship, named Genius Star XI, was carrying a load of lithium-ion batteries across the Pacific Ocean, from Vietnam to San Diego, when the fire started in cargo hold No. 1 on Christmas Day. There were no injuries to the 19 crew members aboard the vessel.
The crew released carbon dioxide into the hold and sealed it over concerns of an explosion. They alerted the Coast Guard about the fire, which diverted the 410-foot cargo ship to Dutch Harbor, one of the nation’s busiest fishing ports located in Unalaska, an Aleutian Islands community about 800 miles southwest of Anchorage.
Upon arriving at Dutch Harbor, an order preventing the ship from going close to shore was issued to “mitigate risks associated with burning lithium-ion batteries or toxic gases produced by the fire.” The city’s primary concern is protecting the health and safety of the community members, the environment, fisheries, and commerce.
The Coast Guard also established a one-mile safety zone around the vessel to ensure the safety of Unalaska residents and surrounding communities. An expert hired by the ship’s owner, Wisdom Marine Group, is working diligently to create contingency plans, arrange for a firefighting team, and ensure the necessary equipment is in place.
A team of marine firefighting experts conducted an assessment of the ship and found no signs of structural deformation or blistering outside of the cargo hold. The Coast Guard will investigate the cause of the fire.
The Genius Star XI, with a carrying capacity of more than 13,000 tons, sails under the flag of Panama and left Vietnam on December 10 en route to Dutch Harbor.
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