At least one person has died and 16 others have been injured in a fire that broke out on a cargo ship in the North Sea, some thirty kilometers off the coast of the Netherlands, which was traveling from Germany to Egypt with thousands of cars. on board.

As reported by the Dutch Coast Guard, the cargo ship is still on fire almost 30 kilometers off the coast of the Netherlands, although the 23 crew members on board have already been evacuated: some were brought ashore in a boat of the maritime rescue services and others have been flown in by helicopter.

The injured were taken by ambulance to hospitals near the coast with respiratory problems, although none of them are in danger, according to regional security services.

The ship Fremantle Highway sailed under the Panamanian flag and left the German port of Bremerhaven for Port Said, in Egypt. It had about 3,000 cars on board, of which 25 were electric cars. The fire could have started in one of those electric vehicles and quickly spread to the rest, the Coast Guard believes.

The crew themselves tried to control the fire, but due to its intensity, it was not possible, which led seven of them to jump off the ship in a controlled manner until the rescue services arrived and pulled them out of the water.

In addition to the official authorities, a fishing boat that was sailing in the area when the fire broke out also came to the rescue of the crew.

The fire continues out of control, especially at the front of the ship, while the Coast Guard is trying to control it from its own vessel because it is no longer safe to transfer firefighters aboard the freighter.

A tugboat managed to attach a cable to the Fremantle Highway to prevent it from drifting, thus ensuring that important shipping routes to and from Germany are not blocked as there is a strong wind current, although the Coast Guard stressed that consideration is being taken all scenarios, including that the freighter may already be sinking.