Crew evacuated from vehicle carrier after fire offshore Adak, Alaska
Photo credit: US Coast Guard

Update on June 6: There are no visual indications that the ship is taking on water or listing, and the extent of the damage is unknown. The Morning Midas’s manager, is coordinating to send a team of salvage specialists to the vessel for further assessment.

A fire broke out on the vehicle carrier Morning Midas, the US Coast Guard reported on Wednesday June 4, as the vessel was sailing about 340 miles southwest of Adak in Alaska. Watchstanders at the seventeenth coast guard district command center received a distress alert on Tuesday at approximately 3:15 p.m. reporting a fire aboard the ship.

The US Coast Guard for the Alaska maritime region is reporting no injuries among the 22 crew aboard the carrier.

Watchstanders immediately issued an urgent marine information broadcast requesting assistance from vessels in the vicinity of the Morning Midas.

All 22 crew members evacuated the ship and were subsequently rescued by the crew of the motor vessel Cosco Hellas, one of the vessels on the scene, according to reports from the US Coast Guard on Wednesday.

The status of the fire is currently unknown, but smoke is still emanating from the vessel.

The vessel departed from Yantai, China on May 26 with destination Lázaro Cárdenas in Mexico where it was expected to arrive on June 15, according to Marine Traffic data.

The coast guard said that watchstanders diverted the crew of U.S. Coast Guard cutter Munro (WMSL 755) to the area, directed the launch of a C-130J Super Hercules aircrew from Coast Guard air station Kodiak, and positioned an MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter aircrew in Adak.

The ship’s crew was actively fighting the fire, the coast guard added. The Liberian-flagged vessel, built in 2006, has a reported gross tonnage of 46800 and a dwt-12249.

“As the search and rescue portion of our response concludes, our crews are working closely with the vessel’s manager, Zodiac Maritime, to determine the disposition of the vessel,” said Rear Admiral Megan Dean, commander of the Coast Guard’s seventeenth district. “We are grateful for the selfless actions of the three nearby vessels who assisted in the response and the crew of motor vessel Cosco Hellas, who helped save 22 lives.”

Crew evacuated from vehicle carrier after fire offshore Adak, Alaska

Photo credit: US Coast Guard

Details about the cause of the fire have not yet been released, with the Coast Guard reporting that updates will be provided about the incident as the situation develops.

The Coast Guard remains on high alert to ensure maritime safety in the region.

Video credit: U.S. Coast Guard Alaska