A timely reminder about how important marine insurance can be to your company has occurred during the last month.
In the early hours of 31 January, off the Vietnamese coast, a fire started in the cargo hold forward of container ship APL Vancouver’s accommodation block.
The ship, in transit from China to Singapore, had to be partly evacuated during the firefighting operations and the shipping line operator advised that there were no reported injuries to crew members.
General Average has been declared, with importers facing an anxious wait to be advised if their cargo has been affected. Salvors are requesting Salvage Security in addition to the General Average adjustment of costs to be apportioned by every single cargo owner.
Cargo loss on the APL Vancouver is said to be quite to be “significant” after several days of water being pumped onto the ship and cargo to fight the fire. Unconfirmed reports advise that the ship, had around 4,500 containers on board (the vessel can hold 9,200 TEU).
This vessel was carrying containers from China and Hong Kong to Singapore, Sri Lanka and India. Transhipment cargo bound for Australia has been affected.
Marine insurance is affordable and essential. For more information on marine insurance, please contact our sales team.
