Lifeboat from Singapore-flagged cargo ship Wan Hai 503 washes ashore in Kerala's Alappuzha
Coastal areas in Alappuzha, Kerala, are on alert after a lifeboat, believed to be from the cargo ship MV Wan Hai 503, washed ashore at Paravur in Punnapra North grama panchayat on Sunday (June 15, 2025) night.
The lifeboat, which drifted ashore, caught the attention of local residents around 9 p.m. They immediately informed the police and the District Disaster Management Authority. It was later shifted to a safe location. The lifeboat has 'Wan Hai 503 Singapore' written on it.
The container ship had caught fire at sea off Kannur coast on June 9 following an explosion. Officials said that the containers that fell overboard from the Singapore-flagged vessel were also expected to drift ashore along Alappuzha, Kollam and Ernakulam coasts between Monday and Wednesday.
The public have been advised to stay away from any suspicious object found on the coast.
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority has urged people to maintain a distance of at least 200 metres from such objects and report them by calling the emergency number 112. The alert was issued as some of the containers reportedly contain hazardous cargo.
A similar alert was issued when cargo vessel MSC Elsa 3 capsized off Alappuzha coast last month. On May 26, two containers washed up at Tharayilkadavu near Arattupuzha. Containers from the ship also drifted ashore along Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram and Kanyakumari coasts.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
3 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
FATF cites India's seizure of dual-use tech from Pak-bound ship in new report
New Delhi: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has highlighted India's seizure of dual-use equipment used in developing missiles from a Pakistan-bound merchant vessel in 2020 in a new report flagging vulnerabilities in the global financial system for countering the financing of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). The stopping of the Pakistan-bound ship and the seizure of dual-use equipment cited in the FATF report was widely reported by the Indian media, including Hindustan Times, when it happened in February 2020. (PTI File Photo) The report from the multilateral financial watchdog listed the incident involving Pakistan among six case studies in a section covering the misuse of the maritime and shipping sectors, including a vast network of vessels, ports and logistics, by illicit actors to evade sanctions and transport a range of commodities, including dual-use equipment. The stopping of the Pakistan-bound ship and the seizure of dual-use equipment cited in the FATF report was widely reported by the Indian media, including Hindustan Times, when it happened in February 2020. However, some aspects of the incident mentioned in the FATF report - such as the fact that the importer of the cargo was linked to Pakistan's National Development Complex, which is involved in the country's missile development programme - haven't been reported before. The FATF listed the incident as one of 'non-declaration of dual use goods under the prescribed export laws of the exporting country'. Though the FATF didn't name the exporting country, the ship was stopped in Indian waters while on its way from China's Jiangyin port to Pakistan's Karachi port. 'In 2020, Indian custom authorities seized an Asian-flagged ship bound for Pakistan. During an investigation, Indian authorities confirmed that documents mis-declared the shipment's dual-use items,' the FATF report said. 'Indian investigators certified the items for shipment to be 'Autoclaves', which are used for sensitive high energy materials and for insulation and chemical coating of missile motors,' the report said, adding that these sensitive items are included in dual-use export control lists of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), India and other countries. The report said the bill of lading of the seized cargo 'provided evidence of the link between the importer and the National Development Complex, which is involved in the development of long-range ballistic missiles'. The export of equipment such as the autoclaves without formal approval from various authorities is a violation of existing law, the FATF said. The National Development Complex (NDC), also known as the National Defence Complex, is a defence and aerospace agency under Pakistan's defence ministry. It has played a crucial role in the development of Pakistan's missile programme. HT had reported last month that a NDC facility at Attock in Pakistan's Punjab province that builds transporter-erecter-launcher vehicles for missiles was among military installations targeted by Indian drones on May 8 during hostilities between the two countries. HT had reported that the merchant vessel Da Cui Yun, which sails under the flag of Hong Kong, was stopped by India's customs department at Kandla port in Gujarat on February 3, 2020, for wrongly declaring an autoclave, which can be used in construction of missiles, as an 'industrial dryer'. At the time, the vessel was sailing from the Chinese inland port of Jiangyin to Port Qasim in Karachi. Indian authorities intercepted the vessel when it dropped anchor at Kandla following an intelligence tip-off. Experts from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), including a team of nuclear scientists, examined the cargo and determined that the 18x4-metre autoclave – a pressure chamber for carrying out various industrial and scientific processes - was a dual-use item that could be used for civilian or military purposes. The vessel was allowed to leave Kandla after the autoclave was seized. Reports at the time had suggested that the Da Cui Yun had sailed several times from China to Karachi via Indian ports carrying several cargoes of machinery. The FATF report said despite the 'grave threat posed by proliferation financing', only 16% of countries assessed by the watchdog and its global network have demonstrated high or substantial effectiveness in a process that evaluates the implementation of targeted financial sanctions under the United Nations Security Council resolutions on proliferation. The report said that unless the public and private sectors 'urgently bolster technical compliance and effectiveness, those seeking to finance WMD proliferation will continue to exploit weaknesses in existing controls'. The report highlighted the evolving methods and techniques used to evade sanctions related to proliferation financing and national and multilateral regime, and outlined how proliferation networks are sourcing dual-use goods, technologies, and knowledge - often through procurement networks and front companies - and using various financial channels to access the global financial system. The report listed the misuse of the maritime and shipping sectors as one of four main methods used to evade sanctions.
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Greek coast guard says over 600 migrants rescued from 2 fishing boats
AP image ATHENS: More than 600 migrants were rescued overnight and early Friday from two wooden fishing boats found sailing miles (kilometers) from the southernmost part of Greece, the country's coast guard said. The first fishing boat, carrying 352 people, was spotted overnight about 30 nautical miles (35 miles, 55 kilometers) south of the tiny island of Gavdos, the coast guard said. Passengers were rescued by a ship from the European border patrol agency FRONTEX, aided by a coast guard patrol boat and four other vessels. The second was found 50 nautical miles (about 60 miles, 90 kilometers) south of the island of Crete with 278 people on board. The passengers were picked up by a passing Portuguese-flagged cargo ship. In both cases, the migrants were transported to Crete. There was no immediate information on the nationalities of those on board the two fishing boats. Another two boats carrying migrants were located in the same area on Thursday, the coast guard said. One, carrying 73 men, was found south of Gavdos and another with 26 people, including one woman and three minors, was found near the coast of southern Crete. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Install the Perfect Pool at Home – Start Here Backyard Pool | Search Ads Learn More Undo The coast guard said those on the smaller boat told authorities they had set sail the previous evening from Tobruk in Libya, and had each paid smugglers either 4,000 euros ($5,500) for their passage to Greece. Two Sudanese teenagers, one aged 16 and the other 19, were arrested on suspicion of migrant smuggling after other passengers identified them as having been operating the boat. Greece has been on one of the preferred routes into the European Union for people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia for decades. Arrivals from neighbouring Turkey to the east and the Libyan coast to the south spiked last year, with Greece recording more than 60,000 people arriving - the vast majority by sea - in 2024, compared to just over 48,000 the previous year, according to figures from the UN refugee agency. As of June 15 this year, a total of 16,290 arrivals were recorded, with more than 14,600 of those by sea. With authorities closely patrolling the eastern sea border with Turkey to prevent migrant boats reaching nearby Greek islands, smugglers appear to be increasingly opting for the much longer and riskier Mediterranean Sea crossing from the north African coast to the southern tip of Greece, using larger boats into which they can cram more people.
United News of India
2 days ago
- United News of India
Ship accidents: SDMA launches Web Application
Thiruvananthapuram, Jun 19 (UNI) The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) has developed a web application to collect information about objects washing ashore or floating in the sea in connection with recent ship accidents off the Kerala coast. The app collects details such as the name and mobile number of the person reporting the object, a description of the item, its live location or nearest landmark, and images. So far, 65 containers linked to the ship accident have been recovered along the coast and relocated to various ports. In Thiruvananthapuram district, 21 barrels found near Vizhinjam and Kovalam have been moved to secure locations at the Vizhinjam port. Two barrels suspected to be related to the accident washed ashore in Alappad (Kollam district) and Kumbla Koyippadi (Kasaragod district). The vessel involved in the incident, Van Hai 503, has now been moved 57 nautical miles away from the Kerala coast. Efforts are ongoing to tow it further out to sea. Reports indicate that the ship is still emitting smoke and fire. According to information from the Coast Guard, there is a possibility that containers that fell from the ship may wash ashore along the southern part of Ernakulam district and the coastal areas of Alappuzha and Kollam districts. In this context, the SDMA emphasized that no one should touch or approach any suspicious object found along the shore. People must maintain a distance of at least 200 meters and inform the matter to the SDMA emergency number 112. UNI DS GNK
