Fire-stricken Morning Midas car carrier sinks in north Pacific

The pure car and truck carrier Morning Midas, which caught fire on June 3 with more than 3,000 vehicles on board, has sunk in the north Pacific Ocean. Damage caused by the fire compounded by heavy weather and subsequent water ingress, caused the vessel to sink at around 16.35 local time (UTC -9) on June 23, according to Zodiac Maritime, which managed the vessel. It was 360 nautical miles from Alaska when it sank. 

As previously reported, the Morning Midas was under charter by SAIC Anji Logistics and en route from Yantai port in China to the Mexican port of Lázaro Cárdenas when smoke was seen emanating from a deck carrying electric vehicles. The 22 crew were forced to abandon the vessel after their emergency firefighting efforts failed to bring the fire under control.

Three vessels were dispatched by the salvors Resolve Marine to the location, with one carrying specialists to assess the vessel’s condition, arriving on June 9. Two tugs with pollution control equipment remain at the site of the sinking as a precaution, monitoring for any signs of pollution or debris. A specialised pollution response vessel is also en route to the location as an additional precaution, said Zodiac Maritime.

“We remain in close coordination with Resolve Marine and the United States Coast Guard, and we extend our sincere thanks for their professionalism, swift response and continued collaboration,” said the company.

There have been a number of PCTC fires in recent years involving the transport of battery EVs and hybrids. In February 2022 the MOL vessel Felicity Ace carrying 4,000 VW Group vehicles burned out of control and eventually sank in the Atlantic. A fire aboard the K Line vessel Fremantle Highway, also with around 3,000 vehicles on board, which broke out in July 2023 was successfully extinguished and the salvaged vessel was towed to Eemshaven in the Netherlands and then onto China for repairs.