As of July 29, 2024, efforts to extinguish the blaze that began around 2:30 PM on July 19 aboard the Maersk Frankfurt container ship are ongoing. The vessel was sailing off the coast of India towards Sri Lanka at the time of the incident. The Indian Coast Guard is actively involved in the operation, deploying five ships, two helicopters, and an aircraft, with additional support from a salvage company. While the main fires have been extinguished, some containers continue to catch fire sporadically.
The ship has been evacuated; tragically, one crew member has died, while the remaining twenty are safe. Currently, the vessel appears structurally stable and is being kept 24 miles from the coast. The ship's owner, the Japanese company Tokei Kaiun, which had leased the vessel to Maersk, has declared a state of General Average. Among the vessels on site, one is specifically tasked with preventing sea pollution in the event of a spill of hazardous materials.