Cargo Ship Carrying 3,000 Vehicles, 800 EVs Burns Off Alaska Coast

The cargo ship Morning Midas, carrying over 3,000 vehicles including around 800 electric and hybrid cars, caught fire about 300 miles south of Adak, Alaska, and continues to burn days after the incident. The fire, likely fueled by lithium-ion battery thermal runaway from the electric vehicles, forced the 22 crew members to abandon the ship safely, with no reported casualties. Salvage teams and firefighting tugs have arrived or are en route to assess the situation, but the fire is expected to continue due to the difficulty in extinguishing EV battery fires and the delay of firefighting resources. The ship is drifting northeast, and while no pollution has been detected so far, environmental response plans are on standby. Zodiac Maritime, which manages the vessel, is tracking the ship but cannot monitor onboard conditions remotely, and the U.S. Coast Guard remains focused on safety and environmental protection. This incident highlights the challenges of transporting electric vehicles by sea, including fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries.