Shipping vessel that lost containers off Washington coast catches fire near Canada
VICTORIA, British Columbia - A shipping vessel that lost 40 shipping containers off Washington's coast had to be evacuated after a fire broke out on the boat.
The Canadian Coast Guard says 16 people were evacuated from the M/V Zim Kingston container ship near Victoria Saturday after a fire broke out in ten of the containers.
Because of chemicals on board the ship, fire boats were unable to apply water directly to the fire. An emergency zone of two nautical miles has been established around the boat and the coast guard is monitoring.
Firefighters continued fighting the fire overnight and into Sunday. The Canadian Coast Guard says there is a reduction in smoke and fire but gale force winds are expected in the area so they are monitoring air quality both on the water and on shore.
On Friday, rough seas caused the boat to list on its side. A total of 40 shipping containers fell off the boat near the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The Canadian Coast Guard says the containers are currently 21 nautical miles off the west coast of Vancouver Island.
The owner of the shipping vessel has contracted Resolve Marine Group for salvage operations. A storm in the area Sunday and Monday is creating challenges in the recovery efforts.
https://komonews.com/news/local/shipping-vessel-that-lost-containers-off-washington-coast-catches-fire-near-canada