The Maersk liner vessel Maersk Honam, which was hit by a serious fire on 6 March, reached anchorage outside the Jebel Ali Port (UAE) on Tuesday 24 April 2018.
The fire broke out around 900 nautical miles southeast of Salalah, Oman, and remains under control. Firefighting activities were initiated by the Indian Coast Guard until vessels with special firefighting capabilities arrived at the scene. Salvage operations are led by Smit Salvage and Ardent – two best-in-class companies within maritime salvage.
After careful evaluation with port authorities in the area, Jebel Ali was chosen as the most suitable to accommodate the vessel. During anchorage hot spots in affected areas will be completely extinguished and further work to stabilise the vessel and bring it alongside will be carried out. Maersk Line expects this work to take 4-5 weeks whereafter Maersk Honam will be moved alongside for discharge operations to commence.
22 crew members who were safely evacuated from the vessel have travelled home and are reunited with their families. Maersk Line continues to maintain regular contact and offer support to them.
The remains of three of the four missing crew members who were found onboard the vessel remain unidentified. After the remains were discovered they were immediately transferred to Mumbai, India, where local authorities are working on identification. Maersk Line is closely collaborating with the concerned authorities who oversee the identification process, ensuring this progresses as efficiently as possible. Frequent contact with the relatives of the lost crew members is maintained, with an offer of continued support in this challenging time for them.
A full investigation in collaboration with relevant authorities is ongoing to determine the cause of the fire. A further assessment of the impact to the vessel and cargo will take place when the vessel has arrived alongside in the port. Maersk Line remains committed to assist all relevant authorities during the investigation.
Background
On Tuesday 6 March 2018 at 15:20 GMT, the Maersk liner vessel Maersk Honam reported a serious fire. The crew managed to release the vessels’ CO2 system into the cargo hold. Regrettably that did not stop the fire. 27 crew members were onboard the vessel, and 22 were safely evacuated. One evacuated crew member passed away due to injuries sustained during fire, and the remains of three of the four missing crew members were found on board the vessel.
The vessel is carrying a total of 7860 containers, corresponding to 12416 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent). All impacted customers have been contacted directly.
Maersk Honam was built in 2017, has a nominal capacity of 15262 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit), and sails under Singapore flag.
