First Photos Show Fire on Maersk Ship | Hope Fading for Missing Crew Members, Maersk Says –...

Spent past 26 years in the containership business, ops, eng, and DG. Merchant ships are manned to pilot ship from port-to-port. Grossly undermanned to handle any emergency. Companies take a calculated risk by relying on Gov't maritime services to respond to crisis'. Cruise ships do this by having inadequate medical facilities aboard and relying on Gov't rescue. Taxpayers from around the world subsidize shipping companies through various Gov't services.
Containerization has done wonders for int'l trade, but it has some weaknesses. Fighting fires is one of them. Crew is not large enough to control on-deck fires. If fire is underdeck and safety systems work, removing oxygen from the hold may be possible. That's assuming certain DG is not improperly stowed below deck. Some Hazmat generates its own oxygen. Class Delta fires are very difficult to control. That was my main job, to ensure the Hazmat was in the right place. There is also the danger of incorrect cargo documentation or unsafe cargo securing.
Most large containership do not have cargo handling equipment. There is danger in moving 20-35 tons at sea, but with a crane it may be possible to jettison some containers to minimize spread of the fire.
A few months after 9/11, a container exploded in LAX terminal resulting in complete lock down and a response by most of the local Gov't agencies. After stopping movement of $100+mil of cargo, the caused of the fire was improper stuffing of cargo. Container had household goods and a small pick-up truck. Instead of disconnecting the truck's battery, they removed it and placed it underneath the rear part of the bed. Shipper than loaded stuff in the truck's bed. The heavy weight on the truck pushed the gas tank on top of the battery. It took some time, but the heat given off by closing the battery circuit ignited gasoline vapors - BOOM.

Maersk - "We move more than cargo." I bet they do...

I've often wondered how these ships which dock in ports around the world and move goods around with hardly any real scrutiny of what's inside are not the targets of regular attacks from those who wish to harm the global economy and countries like the US.