High alert has been sounded along the coastal areas of Kerala as the containers from a Liberian ship that sank on Sunday started washing ashore.
Coastal police said some containers were found along the coast of Kollam and Alappuzha districts.
The total number of containers washed ashore is not yet known, and authorities are working to manage the situation, they said.
Officials have urged the public to stay away from the containers, warning that the ship had 13 hazardous cargos among its 640 containers.
Some containers were carrying dangerous substances such as calcium carbide, a chemical that reacts with seawater to release highly flammable acetylene gas.
READ: Why sinking of Liberian vessel MSC ELSA 3 off Kerala coast could pose serious health concerns
The cargo ship, MSC ELSA 3, sank off the Kerala coast on Sunday, leading to a significant oil spill, and posing a serious threat to the marine ecosystem.
According to the Indian Coast Guard (ICG), the vessel had 84.44 metric tonnes of diesel and 367.1 metric tonnes of furnace oil in its tanks. After the sinking of the ship, the fuel is drifting at a speed of around three kilometres per hour.
Officials have warned that the oil leak could also pose a threat to human health if proper precautions are not taken.
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) and the state government have issued a warning and advised fishermen to avoid venturing into the sea.
The vessel was sailing from Vizhinjam to Cochin Port when it tilted 26 degrees to the starboard side, around 38 nautical miles from southwest off Kochi coast.
The ship had 24 crew members and all of them have been rescued by Indian Navy’s INS Sujata.