Kerala on alert after ship carrying dangerous chemical cargo sinks

India’s southern state of Kerala has been put on high alert after a container ship carrying dangerous cargo sank in the Arabian Sea. The Liberian-flagged MSC Elsa 3 was sailing between the Indian ports of Vizhinjam and Kochi when it dropped approximately 38 nautical miles away due to flooding in one of its compartments. According to sources from the Indian government, all 24 crew members were successfully rescued. The nature of the ‘dangerous cargo’ in 13 of the 640 containers that sank with the ship is not specified. The tanks also contained 84.44 tonnes of diesel fuel and 367.1 tonnes of cooking oil. It is a concern that some of the harmful substances on board the ship may have been released into the sea, endangering the well-being of residents and marine life in the vicinity. The Indian Coast Guard has deployed an aircraft equipped with an oil spill detection system to assess the area, and a vessel fitted with pollution control equipment to the site of the incident.