An oil slick has been reported from a Barbados-flagged bulker grounded in a storm off Taiwan.
The 79,500-dwt panamax Blue Lagoon (built 2010) was forced ashore during Typhoon Krathon on Tuesday after suffering water ingress.
Singaporean news agency CNA reported that a helicopter airlifted all 19 crew members to safety after bad weather hampered the operation earlier.
The seafarers have been sent for medical checks.
Villagers in Lanyu told CNA that the cargo ship was originally located between Longmen Port and Xiaolanyu but was gradually carried towards Longmen by wind and current, before getting stuck.
Lanyu township office secretary Zhou Yuzhu said fuel spills had polluted the coast.
The office has asked for an emergency government response.
Video footage showed the vessel pounded by big waves close to the shore.
Taiwan News reported that the ship developed a list due to water ingress in the engine room.
The crew consisted of nine Egyptians, seven Ukrainians and three Russians.
Gas oil and fuel oil on board
The Coast Guard Administration said the Blue Lagoon was carrying 67,500 tonnes of ore.
There are also 39 tonnes of marine gasoil and 227 tonnes of very low-sulphur fuel oil on board.
The Blue Lagoon left Caofeidian in China on 24 September, bound for Singapore, where it was due on 6 October.
The vessel has insurance cover from West of England in the UK.
The bulker was detained for four days following a port state control inspection in Rotterdam in May 2023, with eight deficiencies.
Grounds for detention included faults relating to the safety of navigation, the structural condition of fuel and ballast tanks, and the weathertight conditions of cargo and other hatches.
The 229-metre ship is operated by Unimanager of Latvia, which could not be contacted.
