All 25 crew members of the MSC HERMES III have been safely rescued after abandoning the containership in the South China Sea on September 22.

The 2,490 TEU, Liberia-flagged vessel issued a distress alert at around 08:45 Singapore time, while approximately 300 km east of Vietnam and within Singapore’s Maritime Search and Rescue Region.

Singapore’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre immediately requested assistance from vessels in the area. Three ships responded, with the 13,000 TEU MSC RUBY recovering all 25 seafarers from a lifeboat. No injuries were reported.

The casualty, however, is not over.

As of September 23, MSC HERMES III remains afloat but unmanned and drifting in the South China Sea. A HYDROPAC navigational warning has listed the vessel as “derelict” near 11°45′N, 112°15′E, around eight nautical miles northeast of its initial distress position.

MSC RUBY has remained nearby, while MSC FLORENTINA and MSC TURIN III have also been reported in the vicinity.

The 38,193-dwt MSC HERMES III was built in Poland in 2006 and measures around 212 metres in length. MSC acquired the vessel in 2020. It had departed Hong Kong following an earlier call at Shanghai and was heading for Jakarta when the emergency occurred.

The cause of the casualty remains unclear. Neither Singapore authorities nor MSC has so far publicly detailed what forced the crew to abandon ship. Reports suggesting a fire onboard also remain unconfirmed, and no confirmed towage or salvage plan has yet been announced.

The immediate priority — the safe rescue of all 25 seafarers — has been achieved. Attention now turns to the drifting vessel itself and the potential navigational and salvage risks in one of Asia’s busiest maritime regions.