CANADIAN authorities have said a blaze on the containership Zim Kingston is under control.
The 4352-TEU, Maltese-flagged containership was en route to Vancouver from Busan when it reportedly lost 40 containers overboard in the ocean at the mouth of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The waterway leads to the Salish Sea and the ports of Vancouver, Seattle, Tacoma and others.
The vessel is currently several kilometres off the city of Victoria, British Columbia, where teams have been fighting the fire.
A statement from Zim on social media confirmed containers fell overboard in heavy weather, “causing a fire to erupt”.
“To handle this incident, we are working closely with the vessel’s owners, Canadian authorities and other relevant agencies,” the statement reads.
“All crew members were reported safe, which is our main concern, as well as the prevention of environmental impact.”
Several reports connected the start of the fire with chemicals in some of the containers.
A significant storm hit the area over the weekend. Local media reported power outages throughout the region with wind gusts of more than 97 kilometres per hour recorded in Seattle.
