A massive container ship lost power near New York City’s Verrazzano Bridge on Saturday – less than two weeks after a cargo ship crashed into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge.
The container ship APL Qingdao, which weighs a whopping 89,000 tons, lost propulsion while transiting New York Harbor around 8:30 p.m.
The freighter Dali, which plowed into one of the Francis Scott Key’s bridge supports, sending the 8,635-foot-long Baltimore Bridge into the water, had also lost propulsion prior to the crash.
The Malta-registered APL Qingdao lost power while crossing the Kill Van Kull waterway, a narrow shipping lane between Staten Island and Bayonne, New Jersey.
The Kill Van Kull is three miles long and separates Newark Bay from Upper New York Bay. It is one of the busiest waterways in the area.
The APL Qingdao, pictured ‘just north’ of the Verrazzano Bridge, lost propulsion Saturday as it crossed the Kill Van Kull waterway
The 89,000-ton Qingdao, registered in Malta, hovered disturbingly close to the bridge connecting Brooklyn to Staten Island.
The incident occurred just a few weeks after the Baltimore tragedy in which a shipping container crashed on the Francis Scott Key Bridge, killing six people.
An image shared on X.com, formerly Twitter, by maritime-themed gCaptain CEO John Konrad showed the 350-meter container ship floating disturbingly close to the Verrazzano Bridge.
Konrad wrote that the ship was “just north” of the bridge connecting Brooklyn and Staten Island.
After the Qingdao’s power outage was observed, three tugboats came to its rescue and tried to take control of the giant shipping container.
A spokesperson for the Coast Guard told New York After that they received a report of the errant sea container around 8:30 p.m.
“Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service New York received a report from the M/V Qingdao around 8:30 PM on Saturday that the vessel had experienced a loss of propulsion in the Kill Van Kull waterway.”
The spokesperson added that the “ship regained propulsion and was assisted by tugboats to Stapleton Anchorage.”
According to boatfinder.comThe Qingdao is 12 years old and operated by the French shipping and logistics company CMA CGM.
The 350-meter-long shipping container is owned by a French logistics company and was headed to Charleston, South Carolina
The incident occurred in the Kill Van Kull waterway, a thin strip of water separating Newark Bay from Upper New York Bay. The strait is often busy with shipping containers; Pictured: A ship sailing through New York Bay
The Qingdao is twelve years old and was escorted from the harbor by three tugboats; shown: information about the ownership of the ship
Before the shipping container could resume its journey, the Coast Guard required the ship’s propulsion system to show that it had been repaired.
They also had to demonstrate that the system was fully operational.
In addition to these requirements, the crew was ordered to prepare a thorough accident report, clarifying what exactly had contributed to the loss of propulsion.
After completing the report, the giant shipping container was allowed to continue its journey to Charleston, South Carolina.
Although the incident caused no damage on Saturday, the image of the hulking shipping container lurking near a bridge brought back unpleasant memories of the disaster in Baltimore a few weeks earlier.
On March 26, the freighter Dali crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing the structure to collapse.
Six people are believed to have died in the destruction, and the body of the third victim was recovered yesterday.
According to John Konrad, the number of power outage incidents in shipping containers such as the Dali and the Qingdao are increasing.
Less than two weeks earlier, tragedy struck Baltimore when a shipping container, which also lost propulsion, crashed into a vital bridge; in the photo: the aftermath of the crash in Baltimore
The Dali crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing it to fall; in the photo: the twisted metal of the fallen bridge
Six people are believed to have died in the crash in Baltimore. The body of the third victim was recovered yesterday
Konrad claimed that the Verrazzano was spared the fate of the Baltimore Bridge because of the presence of Vessel Traffic Services in New York.
“A major difference between Baltimore and New York is that the U.S. Coast Guard operates the Vessel Traffic Service in New York.”
The maritime trade expert further explained that “VTS is similar to air traffic control. They monitor all ships and tugboats and can respond quickly to emergencies.’
“Baltimore had no VTS service.”