U.S. Coast Guard Rescues 22 from Burning Car Carrier Hauling EVs Across the Pacific
A car-carrier ship known as the Morning Midas filled with hundreds of EVs has been evacuated by the U.S. Coast Guard some 300 miles off the coast of Alaska after an onboard fire engulfed the 600-foot cargo ship on Tuesday.
The ship originated from Yantai, China, on May 26 and was bound for the port of Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico, where it was reportedly set to deliver 3000 vehicles, according to a statement from the ship's management company Zodiac Maritime. Of those 3000 vehicles, Zodiac Maritime told Automotive News that the Morning Midas was carrying about 800 electric vehicles, though the manufacturer of these vehicles is not yet known.
Zodiac Maritime said that the 22-person crew of the Morning Midas initiated firefighting procedures but were unsuccessful in putting out the blaze, prompting the U.S. Coast Guard to evacuate all 22 persons on board. A statement from the Alaska Maritime region of the U.S. Coast Guard said that there were no reported injuries from the fire or during the evacuation. Three USCG vessels initially arrived on scene, with a larger cutter ship and aircraft assets arriving later.
This is not the first time in recent years that a boat carrying thousands of cars has sunk. The Felicity Ace, a Panamanian ship regularly contracted by the Volkswagen Group, sank in the North Atlantic Ocean back in 2022 due to an onboard fire allegedly fueled by an electric battery, bringing 4000 VW Group vehicles along with it. (Road & Track editor-at-large Matt Farah actually had a custom-ordered Porsche that sank inside the Felicity Ace.) Then, a Dutch ship known as the Fremantle Highway caught fire in the North Sea in 2023, killing one crew member and drowning a fleet of Rolls-Royces. Similarly, the Grande America sank in 2019 from an on-board fire, dooming a crop of ultra-rare Porsche 911 GT2 RS units.
The implications of such an event for automakers are significant in its own right, but this most recent fire re-ignites debate about the safety of shipping electric vehicles. Following the fire and sinking of the Felicity Ace, a number of safety watchdog organizations as well as anti-EV pundits began to question the sanctity of shipping cars that could ignite into a relatively uncontrollable blaze. Allianz Commercial even confirmed to Reuters that such incidents were at the highest level ever in 2024. That being said, the Vehicle Carrier Safety Forum recently published a set of guidelines to further prepare ship crew for the potential of fire, and included specific actions meant to limit damage and danger should a blaze occur.
While we don't know which manufacturers are affected by this sunken ship just yet, we do know that 3000 vehicles won't ever make it to dealership lots. That's not a drop in the bucket for any automaker, but the safety and security of all 22 crew members remains the most important factor.
(This is a developing story; R&T will update it should more information come to light.)
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