Sailor dies amid cargo ship fire in the North Sea – with electric car suspected to be the cause

One person has died and several others have been injured when a fire broke out on a cargo ship moving cars off the northern tip of the Netherlands. Several crew members jumped overboard in an attempt to escape.

Boats and helicopters were deployed to rescue 23 crew members according to the Dutch coast guard.

The ship, called the Fremantle Highway, is a vehicle cargo ship that was transporting nearly 3,000 cars, 25 of which were electric, from the German port of Bremen to Port Said in Egypt.

It is suspected that one of the electric vehicles is the cause of the fire.

The Dutch coast guard said in a statement on Twitter: “The ship is still on fire. The recovery vessel Hunter has an emergency connection to the ship and thus keeps the ship in a controlled position. Several parties are working on a plan of action to limit the damage as much as possible.”

The injured crew were taken by helicopter to medical facilities on the mainland. They suffered smoke inhalation, or were injured during the evacuation, a spokesperson has said.

Source: logisticsmanager.com