The Morning Midas, a Liberia-flagged car carrier managed by Zodiac Maritime and en route from China to Mexico with some 3,000 vehicles aboard, including around 70 EVs and 681 hybrids, caught fire on June 3 while roughly 300 nautical miles southwest of Alaska’s Adak Island.
Despite heroic firefighting efforts using onboard CO₂ systems, the blaze, believed to have ignited among lithium-ion battery packs, proved impossible to quell.
Thankfully there was no loss of life as all 22 crew members evacuated safely and were rescued by the merchant vessel Cosco Hellas. Salvage operations commenced days later with the Gretchen Dunlap arriving at the location on June 9, followed by the fire-tug Garth Foss on June 15, both reported that the fires seemd to have burnt themselves out and there were no signs of active fire or pollution at the time
Alas and Alack, battered by flames, rough weather, and water ingress, the Morning Midas finally sank on June 23 in waters about 5,000 metres deep, approximately 360 nautical miles from land. Two salvage tugs and a pollution-response vessel remained on-site to monitor for environmental impact, but fortunately, no visible oil slick has been reported.
This catastrophe echoes the 2022 Felicity Ace disaster and spotlights urgent concerns over EV battery fire safety aboard cargo vessels. As global fleets grow increasingly electric, the marine industry must urgently improve emergency protocols and blaze-resistant measures before another drifting car graveyard hits the waves.
