Kerala Races To Contain Oil Spill After Container Vessel Sinks

Photo: Indian Coast Guard

India-West News Desk

KOCHI – Indian authorities are racing to mitigate the environmental fallout from an oil spill off the Kerala coast following the sinking of a container ship in the Arabian Sea. The incident occurred on May 24, when the Liberia-flagged MSC ELSA3, en route from Vizhinjam to Kochi, capsized approximately 38 nautical miles off Kerala, according to officials. All 24 crew members were safely rescued.

By May 26, the vessel had become fully submerged, releasing 100 containers into the sea and leaking fuel, prompting urgent response efforts. The Kerala Chief Minister’s Office confirmed the ship’s submersion, though the cause remains unclear.

In response, the Indian Coast Guard deployed two ships to contain the spill and dispatched a Dornier aircraft to spray oil-dispersing agents over the slick. The vessel was reportedly transporting 640 containers, including 13 with hazardous materials and 12 carrying calcium carbide. Officials have not yet disclosed the specific contents of the containers that entered the water.

Coastal areas have been placed on high alert. Residents have been urged to relocate to safer zones. Local governing bodies have been instructed to avoid contact with any containers that wash ashore, and fishermen have been advised to stay off the sea as a precaution.

Environmentalists warn that such oil spills pose serious threats to marine ecosystems and the local fishing industry, both of which form a vital part of Kerala’s coastal economy.

This incident echoes a similar disaster in 2017, when a collision between a BW LPG tanker and a local ship carrying heavy fuel oil near Chennai caused widespread ecological damage and disrupted the livelihoods of thousands of fishermen, Reuters noted.