Taiwan’s Coast Guard rescued four injured crew members from a bulk carrier that caught on fire off the coast of Kaohsiung, including one crew member with serious burns who required medical treatment.
On 4 January, the Taiwan Coast Guard Administration (CGA) received an alert for a fire in the engine room of the bulker, located off the coast of Pingtung County. The crew managed to extinguish the fire, but three crew members suffered minor burns and one sustained more serious burns. The captain requested evacuation for all 21 crew members onboard.
In addition, the CGA sent five vessels to the scene but high waves over 12 feet made ship-to-ship personnel transfer difficult. A helicopter crew from the Ministry of National Defense joined the operation. Around 1700 hours, the helicopter crew safely rescued all four injured men and transported them to Kaohsiung airport, where they were transferred to a hospital.
The remaining 17 crew members stayed aboard the vessel due to the risk of further flight operations in the hazardous weather conditions. A tug began towing the bulker and as of 5 January the tow was progressing slowly off Taiwan’s coast.
