Fire-ravaged Maersk Honam to be towed to Jebel Ali

Maersk Honam: Hope fades for missing seafarers

The fire-damaged Maersk Honam will be towed to Jebel Ali where its undamaged cargo will be offloaded, according to a statement from Mediterranean Shipping Company, Maersk’s partner in the 2M shipping alliance.

In a statement to its customer issued Thursday, MSC said it has been informed by Maersk that the Maersk Honam will be headed for Jebel Ali, but it may still be two weeks before the vessel gets to the port.

“The fire remains under control and salvage work continues, led by Smit and Ardent.The focus is on completing plans to bring Maersk Honam alongside in a suitable port and discharge the cargo. Maersk Honam will most likely be towed to Jebel Ali, Dubai; however, it will probably take a few weeks and further investigations before we will be able to bring the vessel alongside,” Maersk confirmed in a statement it issued yesterday. 

The 353-meter Maersk Honam, an ultra-large container ship (ULCS) only recently delivered in 2017, caught fire on March 6 in the Arabian Sea en route to the Mediterranean Sea, via the Suez Canal. 

The incident claimed the lives of five crew members, including two missing crew members whose bodies have not been recovered.

The Maersk Honam was reported by Maersk to be carrying a total of 7,860 containers, corresponding to 12,416 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent). 

The fire ripped through the entire forward section of the ship from bow to the superstructure, destroying hundreds if not thousands of containers.