A cargo ship that had been hauling 3,000 new cars caught fire and sank in the North Pacific Ocean.
The Morning Midas sank near the Aleutian Islands in international waters off the coast of Alaska, The Associated Press reported.
It was owned by Zodiac Maritime and was sailing under the Liberian flag, headed from China to Mexico, USA Today reported.
The ship had caught fire and the crew was not able to extinguish it, so they abandoned ship, letting the vessel float dead in the water. No one was hurt.
The fire burned out before firefighting and salvage ships arrived, the Times reported. It was burning on the deck that was carrying electric vehicles, but it is too early to determine if the fire was started by the electric vehicles.
The ship had 3,048 vehicles, with 70 of them electric and 681 being hybrid, USA Today reported.
Electric vehicles have lithium-ion batteries that can overheat, causing fires that can spread fast. Fires caused by the batteries can produce toxic gas and can be difficult and dangerous to extinguish, the Times reported.
The fire, in addition to bad weather and water coming on board, caused the cargo ship to sink in water that is about 16,404 feet deep, 415 miles from land, according to the Coast Guard.
Coast Guard spokesman Petty Officer Cameron Snell said, “There is no visible pollution. Right now, we also have vessels on scene to respond to any pollution.”
The ship carried 1,530 metric tons of very low-sulfur fuel oil, 350 tons of marine gas oil.
The ship was sailing to Mexico to deliver the vehicles. None of the vehicles were recovered before the ship sank, The New York Times reported.
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