Crew Rescued After Fire on Bulk Carrier Panoria off Taiwan

On January 4th, four crew members were rescued from the bulk carrier Panoria after a fire broke out in its engine room off the coast of Taiwan. The vessel, left without power, is now being towed to the Port of Kaohsiung.

The fire caused the ship to drift after disabling its engine. Although the 21-member crew managed to extinguish the blaze, four suffered burns during the effort, including one with severe injuries.

The Taiwan Coast Guard Administration (CGA) received the vessel’s distress signal at 5:00 PM local time when it was about 23 nautical miles off Cape Eluanbi, Taiwan’s southernmost point. In response, the CGA dispatched five ships to assist. However, rough seas with waves reaching 3–4 meters prevented ship-to-ship rescue of the injured crew.

A helicopter from the Ministry of National Defence arrived at approximately 7:00 PM, airlifting the four injured individuals to Kaohsiung Airport. They were then transported to a hospital for urgent medical care.

On January 5th, the St. Kitts and Nevis-flagged tugboat Salvage Rigger began towing the Panoria to the Port of Kaohsiung, where it is expected to arrive by January 6th.