The vessel was carrying 640 containers, including 13 with “hazardous cargo” and 12 with calcium carbide, the Indian coast guard said, without disclosing the contents of the containers that fell into the sea.
All 24 crew members on board were rescued, with the Indian coast guard and a navy patrol boat collecting the sailors, who were from Georgia, Russia, Ukraine and the Philippines.
Calcium carbide is used in the chemical industry, including for fertiliser production and steelmaking.
Cyprus-based MSC Shipmanagement, which owns the vessel, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Kerala coast has been put on high alert, with local coastal bodies instructed not to touch or go near the containers – some of which began washing up on beaches on Monday – and fishermen advised not to venture into the sea.
