The rescue vessel arrived too late and was helpless to do anything about the burning car carrier Morning Midas at sea. It could only wait for the fire to go out on its own or for the vessel to eventually sink.
A few days ago, the first rescue tugboat, Gretchen Dunlap, finally arrived at the accident site approximately 220 miles south of Adak Island, Alaska, USA. This was six days after the car carrier Morning Midas caught fire. Currently, the car carrier, which is managed by the British ship management company Zodiac Maritime and departed from Yantai, China, is drifting northeast at a speed of approximately 2 knots miles per hour.
Faced with the continuously burning hull, rescue personnel could only stand on the tugboat and observe from a distance, and were almost powerless to control the fire.
The rescue vessel, operated by Resolve Marine of the United States, was the first of three tugboats expected to arrive at the scene. The second tugboat would take several days to arrive, and the third would take more than a week—by which time it would be too late.
It is reported that the rescue team has been monitoring wind direction and strength in order to avoid toxic gases produced by burning lithium-ion batteries on board. The tugboat needs to remain upwind of the accident vessel.
According to a statement from Zodiac Maritime, the “Morning Midas” caught fire around 00:00 UTC on June 3, 2025, with smoke initially observed rising from the deck area carrying electric vehicles. The 4,990 CEU car carrier was built by Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry in 2006. At the time of the incident, the vessel was carrying 3,048 cars, including 70 pure electric vehicles and 681 hybrid electric vehicles.
After the fire broke out, the crew immediately initiated emergency firefighting procedures to extinguish the blaze, but the fire could not be controlled, and they were ultimately forced to abandon ship and escape. Subsequently, they were rescued by a COSCO container ship “Cosco Hellas,” which had heard the distress call nearby.
Electric vehicle fires differ fundamentally from traditional internal combustion engine vehicle fires: electric vehicle fires reach extremely high temperatures, spread very quickly, and release large amounts of toxic gases.
Given the current situation, rescue vessels can only wait for the flames on the car carrier Morning Midas to extinguish themselves before attempting to tow it away.
However, maritime firefighting experts believe that it is more likely that the collapsed and displaced structures inside the ship caused it to list, ultimately sinking to the bottom of the sea.
However, marine fire safety experts believe that it is more likely that the collapsed and displaced structures inside the vessel caused the hull to list, ultimately sinking to the bottom of the sea.
This will result in a significant pollution risk. According to reports, the Morning Midas is carrying more than 300 tons of marine gasoil and approximately 1,500 tons of very low sulfur fuel oil.