Kerala Police books owner, captain, crew of burning cargo vessel

Kochi: The Kerala Police registered a case against the owner of the Singapore-flagged cargo ship MV Wan Hai 503 over the fire outbreak while efforts to douse the fire onboard are still on. The case also named the captain and its crew members based on a complaint filed by a Kozhikode native named Suneesh P V.

The complaint accused those named in the FIR of handling the container ship in a reckless manner, causing a threat to human life, with full knowledge that the container onboard ship carried combustible materials, explosive substances and harmful chemicals.

The complainant has said that the discharge of fuel, other oils, and hazardous gases has adversely impacted marine life and ecology. It also stated that the fire incident disrupted smooth traffic through the sea route where it happened.

The case has been registered under Sections 282 (rash navigation of vessel), 285 (addresses danger or obstruction in public ways or lines of navigation), 286 (negligent conduct involving poisonous substances), 287 (negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter), 288 (rash or negligent actions, endangers human life or causes harm by using explosive substances), and 3(5) (criminal act is done by several people in furtherance of a shared common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

The accused are charged with the same offences listed against the owner, captain and crew of MSC Elsa 3, the Liberian-flagged container vessel that sank around 14.6 nautical miles off the Alappuzha coast on May 24 en route to Kochi from Vizhinjam, Onmanorama reported.

Following the fire incident, 18 members of the ship crew were rescued and were shifted to Mangaluru. However, four of the crew remain missing.