Kerala mulls legal action against capsized ship

Kochi, May 28 (IANS) Five days after the Liberian-flagged vessel MSC ELSA 3, which sank in the Arabian Sea, close to the Kerala coast near Kochi, the state government has sought expert opinion to take legal action against the ship.

On Saturday, the ship, en route from Vizhinjam to Kochi port, capsized approximately 14.6 nautical miles (about 27 km) off the Thottappally coast.

Around 100 containers had fallen into the sea, and a day later, with the ship sinking to the bottom of the sea, the remaining near about 500 containers also sank with it.

State Fisheries Minister Saji Cherian told IANS that the accident has caused undue worries to the fishing community as fishers have been asked not to fish in the area.

Moreover, the minister added that those engaged in exporting seafood products are also on tenterhooks.

“There are reports that containers containing hazardous materials have sunk to the bottom. We are all waiting for expert opinions to find out how safely those containers believed to contain hazardous things can be neutralised,” said Cherian.

Since Tuesday, empty containers from the ship have started arriving across the coastlines at Kollam, Alappuzha and Ernakulam districts.

The police are having a tough time chasing away anxious onlookers who have started to arrive to have a look at the containers. At some places, some consignments have also reached the shores.

--IANS

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