Some crew back on board as fire aboard container ship brought under control

Some crew back on board as fire aboard container ship brought under control
11 Jan 2019 https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/local/some-crew-back-on-board-as-...

Five crew members are back onboard the Yantian Express now that the container ship is under control.

The Hapag-Lloyd group safely transferred back to their vessel from fire tug Smit Nicobar on Wednesday evening, the German shipping company said in a news release. Twenty-two crew members were evacuated from the Yantian Express on Saturday and Sunday.

The Yantian Express was making its way for Halifax from Colombo, Sri Lanka, when a container caught fire on Jan. 3, before spreading to several others. Poor weather conditions delayed the crew’s attempts to extinguish the blaze.

Firefighting efforts from Smit Nicobar and Maersk Mobiliser “have allowed the fire to be largely contained and brought under control,” the release said.

The Yantian Express, about 1,400 kilometres off Nova Scotia, is slowly being towed by the Maersk Mobiliser. The ship’s arrival date and destination are still to be determined, said a Hapag-Lloyd spokesman.

There is still no estimate of damage to the Yantian Express or cargo.