DG Shipping inquiry report identifies causes for MSC Elsa 3 sinking
The Directorate General of Shipping concluded the preliminary investigation into the sinking of the container ship MSC Elsa-3, which occurred in May 2025 off the
The Directorate General of Shipping concluded the preliminary investigation into the sinking of the container ship MSC Elsa-3, which occurred in May 2025 off the Alappuzha coast. The enquiry report, submitted in an affidavit before the Kerala High Court, sought to identify the reasons that caused the incident, which resulted in marine pollution off the coast of Alappuzha, while pollutants from the vessel floated to many points on the southern coast of India, causing significant coastal pollution. The report went into detail about the progressive system deficiencies and failures that resulted in the ship’s sinking, such as the failure of the ballast water system with integrated heeling correction, failure of the safety management system due to inadequate maintenance protocols, delayed spare parts supply, defective machinery and insufficient crew training among other factors.
Critical system malfunction, compounded by structural failures and the incompetence of crew members, was identified as the causative factor in the report. It said that the ship had shown an inherent tilt to the right in previous voyages. During the journey from Vizhinjam to Kochi, the ship’s ballast water system failed first, and as a result, the crew could not stop the progressive flooding into the ballast tanks. The ship’s safety management system was reported to be deficient, especially regarding maintenance procedures and spare parts management. The ship had tilted to about 26 degrees, causing several container stacks to shift, further compromising the ship’s stability.
By midnight on May 24, 2025, the containers had begun to fall overboard, creating additional hazards. The investigation also revealed that the ship already had many defects in previous inspection reports, but were not sufficiently repaired or replaced. They had relied on temporary fixes, which created points of failure throughout the system. The chief officer of the ship had joined one week before the incident and was not given sufficient time for the handover, which also added to the lack of crisis management, the report said. Interviews of the crew showed that there were gaps in practical training for emergency ballast operations. Many crew members had only demonstrated theoretical knowledge with no real-time experience, according to the report.
The report identifies critical system malfunction, compounded by structural failures and the incompetence of crew members, as the causative factor for the ship to sink. It said that the ship had shown an inherent tilt to the right in previous voyages. It finds the ship’s safety management system to be deficient, especially regarding maintenance procedures and spare parts management.
The BriefWire