A serious fire broke out aboard the Singapore-flagged container ship Espirito Santo Express while the vessel was sailing from Singapore to the Brazilian port of Santos.
The incident occurred on 15 October, with Hapag-Lloyd officially confirming the fire the following day.
The container ship is owned by a Seaspan entity and is currently operating under charter for German container shipping company Hapag-Lloyd.
The company initially reported that all crew members were safe and that measures were being taken together with Seaspan to bring the situation under control.
Later navigational warnings confirmed that the crew had been forced to abandon the burning vessel, leaving Espirito Santo Express unmanned and drifting in the South Atlantic.
A total of 28 seafarers were onboard. All were successfully rescued by the nearby bulk carrier Aeolian Arrow.
Brazilian authorities were also informed of the emergency. A Brazilian Air Force KC-390 Millennium aircraft was reportedly sent to support the search-and-rescue operation, while commercial vessels in the area were asked to provide assistance.
According to a published navigational warning, Espirito Santo Express was located at approximately 28° south latitude and 26° west longitude, far offshore in the South Atlantic.
However, a separate serious incident occurred during the final stages of the rescue operation.
While a rescue boat was being recovered aboard Aeolian Arrow, the vessel’s Chief Officer fell overboard. He was reportedly located alive, but after several attempts to recover him, the seafarer was lost from sight and remains missing at sea. A maritime investigation into the incident has been opened.
The cause of the fire aboard Espirito Santo Express has not yet been officially established.
Some maritime reports have referred to an explosion before the fire developed, but it remains unclear whether the incident originated inside a container, in the engine room or elsewhere onboard.
Hapag-Lloyd has also not yet disclosed the full extent of damage to the vessel or its cargo.
At the time of the incident, the ship was sailing fully loaded from Asia toward the east coast of South America.
Espirito Santo Express has a capacity of approximately 11,923 TEU, a gross tonnage of 113,828 GT and a deadweight of around 132,789 tonnes.
The container ship was built in 2018, sails under the flag of Singapore and measures approximately 330 metres in length and 48.2 metres in beam.
The vessel operates on services connecting Asia with the east coast of South America, including Hapag-Lloyd’s AS2 service.
According to the latest available information, the full extent of the damage, the condition of the cargo and the future of the vessel remain unclear.
Salvage and technical teams are continuing to assess the situation before a decision is made on whether the vessel will be towed, taken to a port of refuge or undergo further emergency salvage operations.
