VICTORIA - A Canadian Coast Guard spokesman says it's not known how many containers burned aboard a cargo ship from a still-smouldering blaze that initially spread to 10 of them off the coast of Victoria.

JJ Brickett says the fire is mostly under control, but officials are still trying to find some of the roughly 40 containers that fell overboard on Friday.

He says provincial and federal officials are working with all the First Nations on the west coast of Vancouver Island while investigating the fire aboard the MV Zim Kingston.

Brickett says the location of some of the containers that landed in the ocean is being monitored but efforts to retrieve them can't start until after a break in a storm that is forecast to worsen until tomorrow.

He says efforts to read labels on the downed containers in order to try and identify their contents have not been fruitful but two of them are known to contain hazardous chemicals and officials are trying to account for all of them.

Brickett says Transport Canada inspectors will be aboard the ship after the safety and security of the vessel is ensured, and that its Greece-based owner is providing assistance.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2021.