Chemical Leak Causes Fatal Ship Fire Off Indonesia’s Southeast Sulawesi, Killing 2 Crew

A ship carrying chemicals and other equipment was caught on fire, triggered by a chemical leak off Indonesia’s southeast Sulawesi province, which led to the deaths of 2 crew members.

KM Legenda Nusantara 99 was en route to Morowali in Central Sulawesi from Jakarta, with 13 crew members, when the fire began around 1:00 a.m local time on Monday.

The accident happened in the waters between the Islands of Selayar and Kabaena, according to the Kendari Search and Rescue or Basarnas, which added that the crew inhaled a lot of smoke before they were rescued.

One of the crew members, aged 22, Yudi Bagus, died when he was being taken to the hospital for treatment as he had difficulty breathing.

The 42-year-old John Petro, the ship’s 2nd officer, was also declared dead upon arrival at the hospital due to inhaling toxic fumes.

The ship captain, Sahriar, is undergoing treatment for severe poisoning from harmful chemicals at the LM Baharuddin Hospital in Muna.

The 13 crew members were rescued by the police, port authorities, health workers and personnel from Basarnas, who coordinated their efforts to work quickly. However, they were not the first to reach the scene.

The KM KBR Benua Dua, an Indonesian-flagged cement and cargo carrier, rescued the crew members before teams transferred them to the shore for medical attention.