Abig freight ship with a fire in its holdis being kept 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) offshore of an Alaska port as a safety measure while efforts are carried out to snuff out the flames, the U.S. Coast Guard stated Saturday.
There were no injuries to the 19 team members aboard the Genius Star XI, which was bring a load of lithium-ion batteries throughout the Pacific Ocean, from Vietnam to San Diego, theguard’s Alaska districtstated in a release.
The fire began on Christmas Day in freight hold No. 1, a representative for ship ownerKnowledge Marine Groupstated in a declaration. The team launched co2 into the hold and sealed it over issues of a surge.
Ship’s workers signaled the Coast Guard early Thursday early morning about the fire. The Coast Guard stated it diverted the 410-foot (125-meter) freight ship to Dutch Harbor, among the country’s busiest fishing ports situated in Unalaska, an Aleutian Islands neighborhood about 800 miles (1,287 kilometers) southwest of Anchorage.
The ship got here Friday, however an order avoiding the Genius Star XI from going near to coast was released to “alleviate threats related to burning lithium-ion batteries or poisonous gasses produced by the fire,” Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Mike Salerno stated in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
“The city’s main issue is securing the health and wellness of our neighborhood members, the environment, fisheries and commerce,” Unalaska acting city supervisor Marjie Veeder stated in a declaration.
Veeder stated the city’s emergency situation operations center “is acting upon behalf of the neighborhood and promoting our position to secure our neighborhood. We are actively keeping track of the scenario.”
There is threat connected with any vessel fire, triggering the Coast Guard to provide another precaution besides avoiding the ship from getting closer than 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) to coast.
“The security of Unalaska citizens and the surrounding neighborhoods is a leading concern for us, so as a safety measure we are keeping a one-mile (1.61-kilometer) security zone around the vessel,” Salerno stated.
The owners stated there has actually been no oil leakages connected with the occurrence.
A group of marine firefighting specialists late Friday carried out an evaluation of the ship and discovered no indications of structural contortion or blistering beyond the freight hold, the Coast Guard stated.
That group stays on board the ship to examine the scenario, Salerno stated.
A specialist worked with by the Taipei, Taiwan-based Wisdom Marine Group “is working vigilantly to produce contingency strategies, schedule a firefighting group, and make sure the essential devices remains in location,’ the group stated in a declaration.
The Coast Guard will examine the reason for the fire.
The Genius Star XI left Vietnam on Dec. 10 en path to Dutch Harbor, according to theMarine Traffic siteThe ship with a bring capability of more than 13,000 heaps (11,793 metric tonnes) cruises under the flag of Panama.
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