Reederei NSB’s MSC Flaminia suffered a fire followed by an explosion this weekend while the ship was sailing from America to Europe. One crew member is missing, one has died from his injuries, three more are recovering in hospital. The rest of the crew was safely picked up by another vessel. Smit Salvage vessels are en route to salvage the vessel that is currently adrift on the Atlantic Ocean.
The crew of MSC Flaminia was comprised of 23 men (five Germans, three Poles and fifteen Philippine employees) and two passengers. Nearby vessel DS Crown was able to rescue 22 crew as well as the two passengers and has accommodated all persons. One crew member is still missing. Four crew members were injured in the explosion, one of which died as a result of his injuries. The rest of the crew as well as the passengers are unharmed.
Injured Crew Members Transferred by Helicopter
The ship owner sent the MSC Stella to the DS Crown to pick up the injured seafarers, which then proceeded to the Azores. An oncoming helicopter took over the injured personnel and flew them to a hospital on the Azores. Two crew members will probably be released at the end of this week to be repatriated. The other crew member has been transferred to a special hospital in mainland Portugal. The remaining crewmembers are onboard the oil tanker DS Crown and are on their way to Falmouth/UK where they are expected to arrive during the evening of Wednesday, July 18. They will then be repatriated.
Smit Salvage En Route
Smit Salvage of Rotterdam is responding to the MSC Flaminia. Two large firefighting tugs have been despatched. The first, Fairmount Expedition, will arrive in the area during the early evening of Tuesday, July 17. The second, Anglian Sovereign, left Inverness, Scotland, on 16 July and is expected to arrive during late Thursday or early Friday. Additionally, a second ship of NSB’s fleet, the MS Hanjin Ottawa, has deviated to approach the site of the incident to support the salvage operations and is currently on site.
Cause Still Unclear
Until the arrival of the salvage vessels, the cause of the fire that started at cargo hatch no. 4 and the condition of MSC Flaminia remain unresolved. NSB’s emergency team is working together with all involved authorities to investigate the incident.
Picture: The MSC Flaminia before the fire (source: https://www.reederei-nsb.de/site_en/index.php?node_id=2281[Reederij NSB])
