A stack of containers collapsed in the Californian port of Long Beach: The vessel “Mississippi” lost parts of its cargo, urging the Coast Guard to take action.
On Tuesday morning (local time), several rows of containers collapsed on the container ship “Mississippi” as it docked at Pier G in the port of Long Beach. According to the port, 67 containers fell into the water as a result of the collapse.
The “Mississippi” (255 m long, 37 m wide), which flies the flag of Portugal, was chartered by the Israeli shipping company Zim and is owned and managed by MPC Container Ships. It had come across the Pacific from Yantian, which means that the containers most likely contained cargo from China.
At the time of the collapse, a clean air barge was connected to the Mississippi and was damaged by falling containers.
Representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Long Beach Fire and Police Departments, the Port of Long Beach and the Army Corps of Engineers responded to the incident. To ensure the safety of dock workers and other personnel, cargo operations at Pier G have been temporarily suspended, but trucks are able to access the site. No injuries were reported in the incident and other terminals are not affected by the restrictions. A safety zone of around 500 meters has been set up around the scene of the accident, and ships receive safety messages every hour to alert them to the danger.
The shipping company Zim confirmed the accident. “Zim is actively working with representatives of the port and other authorities to bring the situation under control and prevent potential environmental damage,” it said in a statement. The cause of the collapse and the extent of the damage have not yet been clarified and the coastguard’s investigation is ongoing. (JW)
