ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A big cargo ship with a fireplace in its maintain is being stored 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) offshore of an Alaska port as a precaution whereas efforts are undertaken to extinguish the flames, the U.S. Coast Guard stated Saturday.
There have been no accidents to the 19 crew members aboard the Genius Star XI, which was carrying a load of lithium-ion batteries throughout the Pacific Ocean, from Vietnam to San Diego, the guard’s Alaska district stated in a launch.
The fireplace began on Christmas Day in cargo maintain No. 1, a spokesperson for ship proprietor Knowledge Marine Group stated in an announcement. The crew launched carbon dioxide into the maintain and sealed it over issues of an explosion.
Ship’s personnel alerted the Coast Guard early Thursday morning in regards to the hearth. The Coast Guard stated it diverted the 410-foot (125-meter) cargo ship to Dutch Harbor, one of many nation’s busiest fishing ports situated in Unalaska, an Aleutian Islands neighborhood about 800 miles (1,287 kilometers) southwest of Anchorage.
The ship arrived Friday, however an order stopping the Genius Star XI from going near shore was issued to “mitigate dangers related to burning lithium-ion batteries or poisonous gasses produced by the fireplace,” Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Mike Salerno stated in an electronic mail to The Related Press.
“Town’s main concern is defending the well being and security of our neighborhood members, the atmosphere, fisheries and commerce,” Unalaska performing metropolis supervisor Marjie Veeder stated in an announcement.
Veeder stated the town’s emergency operations heart “is performing on behalf of the neighborhood and advocating our place to guard our neighborhood. We’re actively monitoring the scenario.”
There’s hazard related to any vessel hearth, prompting the Coast Guard to difficulty one other security measure in addition to stopping the ship from getting nearer than 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) to shore.
”The security of Unalaska residents and the encircling communities is a prime precedence for us, in order a precaution we’re maintaining a one-mile (1.61-kilometer) security zone across the vessel,” Salerno stated.
The homeowners stated there was no oil leaks related to the incident.
A staff of marine firefighting consultants late Friday performed an evaluation of the ship and located no indicators of structural deformation or blistering outdoors of the cargo maintain, the Coast Guard stated.
That staff stays on board the ship to guage the scenario, Salerno stated.
An skilled employed by the Taipei, Taiwan-based Knowledge Marine Group “is working diligently to create contingency plans, prepare for a firefighting staff, and make sure the crucial tools is in place,’ the group stated in an announcement.
The Coast Guard will examine the reason for the fireplace.
