VNA reported that the Indian Navy said that the MSC ELSA 3, registered as a 184m long cargo ship, sent an emergency signal due to an accident while moving from Vizhinjam port to the Indian city of Kochi.
Navy aircraft were quickly dispatched to the scene and discovered two life rafts near a container ship tilted in the waters about 70 km southwest of Kochi.
In a statement, the Indian Ministry of National Defense stated that all crew members had been rescued safely. They are from Georgia, Russia, Ukraine and the Philippines.
The ship sank with 640 containers, including 13 containers carrying dangerous goods and 12 containers containing calcium carbonate.
It is not yet clear what dangerous goods are, while calcium coated is used in the chemical industry, including fertilizer production and steel smelting. The ship also carried about 370 tons of fuel.
The Indian Navy said that because the coastal area of Kerala has a sensitive ecosystem, the Coast Guard has had to activate all work to be ready to respond to pollution, and deploy a spillway oil detection system, but there have been no reports of any incidents.
