[060119.EN.SEA] Boxes Catch Fire Mid-Atlantic on Hapag-Lloyd's 7,510-TEUer

FIRE broke out in one container aboard Hapag-Lloyd's 7,510-TEU Yantian Express in the mid Atlantic 650 nautical miles east of Canada and spread to other containers, the company said.

"It is still too early to make a precise estimate of any damage to the vessel or its cargo. Hapag-Lloyd is closely cooperating with all relevant authorities," said the company statement.

The 23-man crew were unharmed. Efforts to extinguish the fire in the containers were suspended in heavy weather, said the press release from the German shipping giant.

The German-flagged vessel was in the East Coast Loop 5 (EC5) service, on its way from Colombo to Halifax via the Suez Canal.

Source : HKSG.