18 rescued from Taiwanese ship fire near southern India hospitalized

New Delhi, June 9 (CNA) Eighteen crew members rescued from a Taiwan-based Wan Hai Lines container ship that caught fire off the southwest coast of India on Monday have been taken to a hospital in the port city of Mangaluru, according to local media reports.

Indian news outlet Kerala Kaumudi said the rescued crew members -- including four Taiwanese nationals -- were escorted by the Indian Navy, which responded to the incident Monday afternoon.

According to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in India, four crew members remain missing, including two Taiwanese nationals, one person from Indonesia and one from Myanmar.

Of the 18 crew members rescued, five were injured: two Chinese nationals suffered burns; one Myanmar national sustained facial burns; another from Myanmar had general burn injuries; and an Indonesian crew member suffered more serious burns but remains conscious.

The ship, Wan Hai 503, departed Colombo, Sri Lanka, on the evening of Saturday and was scheduled to arrive in Mumbai on Tuesday.

Following the fire, the Indian Coast Guard launched a rapid rescue operation approximately 130 nautical miles northwest of the coast of Kerala.

Aircraft were deployed to assess the situation and drop emergency supplies, while four Coast Guard vessels were dispatched before the Indian Navy ship INS Surat arrived to assist.