Cargo ship carrying more than 3,000 cars is now abandoned off the coast of Alaska
Published on Jun 12, 2025 at 1:26 PM (UTC+4)
by Ben Thompson
Last updated on Jun 12, 2025 at 9:18 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
This cargo ship carrying more than 3,000 cars is now abandoned off the coast of Alaska.
The Morning Midas cargo vessel caught fire on June 3, 22 miles south of Adak, Alaska.
A total of 3,048 vehicles are on board, with 65 being electric and a further 681 being hybrids.
The United States Coast Guard is still continuing its response to the fire.
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The Morning Midas ship was transporting the cars onboard from China to Mexico when the fire broke out.
Crew members attempted to put out the flames, but all 22 of them were forced to abandon ship.
Zodiac Maritime, the ship’s operator, confirmed in a statement that nobody had been injured.
Smoke had reportedly been seen rising from a deck which contained electric vehicles, although it is not known which models were onboard.
The statement from Zodiac read:
“The relevant authorities have been notified, and we are working closely with emergency responders with a tug being deployed to support salvage and firefighting operations.”
This isn’t the first time that a cargo ship carrying cars has caught fire.
Back in 2022, a ship transporting Porsches and Volkswagens went up in flames in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
That ship ended up sinking after two weeks.
Fires on board such vessels are at their highest level in a decade, according to insurer Allianz Commercial.
In its 2025 safety and shipping report, the company said:
“The reality is the risk remains significant due to the size of these ships and the complexities involved in firefighting and salvage.”
Whilst it’s not a super regular occurrence, it’s still a concern for some shipping companies.
Norway’s Havila Kystruten now refuses to carry EVs at all, as it has judged the risk to be too high.
But with EVs increasing in popularity, companies may not have much of a choice further down the line.
Fortunately, work is being done to minimize the risks of fires breaking out in electric vehicles.
In China, new standards will require batteries to undergo strict new testing to ensure safety is second to none.
If there are any positives to take from the fire, it could be that this will make the case for battery safety all the more urgent.
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