Boxship Catches Fire off Singapore

A 9,092 TEU containership owned by China’s COSCO Shipping Lines caught fire on August 23, while it was en route to Singapore. 

As informed, a dense smoke was detected in hold number 4 of MV COSCO Shipping Thames voyage 6E.

The crew activated the fire extinguisher system and subsequently put out the fire, German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd said.

At the time of the incident, the boxship was carrying more than 30 containers which were not affected by the fire.

An investigation into the causes of the fire has been launched.

Due to the longer stay in Singapore, the vessel is likely to bypass its call at Hong Kong port. COSCO Shipping Thames departed for China’s Yangshan Port on August 29, the ship’s AIS data from VesselsValue shows.

“We very much regret any inconvenience caused, which in this case is beyond our control,” Hapag-Lloyd further said.

Built in 2017, the vessel is deployed in the Asia to South America Eastcoast (ASE) service.