A fire on a cargo ship carrying almost 3,000 cars off the coast of the Dutch island of Ameland has left one sailor dead and 22 others hurt.
A major salvage operation is in full swing in the North Sea. The fire on the vessel could reportedly burn for several days.
Crew members were treated for injuries, including breathing problems and burns.
A Dutch coastguard spokesman said the fire was probably caused by one of 25 electric vehicles on board the ship.
Members of the crew initially tried to douse the flames themselves but were overwhelmed and were eventually forced to evacuate.
The captain of the Ameland lifeboat, Willard Molenaar, told public broadcaster, NOS, that seven people had leapt 30m into the sea.
“One by one they jumped and we had to fish them out of the water,” he said. “They were really desperate so they had to jump – you don’t just do that for the sake of it.”
Photos shared by the coastguard showed the Panamanian-flagged Freemantle Highway engulfed in smoke with flames licking the deck in an area of the North Sea.
The coastguard told Dutch news agency, ANP, the fire could continue for days. The sides of the ship were being doused with water to cool it down, but rescue boats avoided pouring too much water on board because of the risk of sinking.
The cargo ship left the port of Bremerhaven in northern Germany at around 15:00 local time on Tuesday on course for Port Said in Egypt.
It ran into trouble overnight, about 27km (17 miles) north of the Ameland in the Wadden Sea, on the edge of the North Sea designated a World Heritage site. —BBC
