Photo: Taiwan's Environmental Protection Department
A China-registered heavy-lift vessel that had previously involved in an accident at Taiwan’s Keelung Port just two weeks ago, has now run aground along the coast of Taiwan after battling severe weather.
Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration (CGA) safely rescued all 17 crew members after the Yu Zhou Qi Hang, carrying three ship-to-shore container cranes, became beset by rough seas brought on by Typhoon Kong-rey.
Photos and videos posted on social media show the vessel struggling heavy weather just offshore and later grounded against rocks, with at least one of the loaded cranes collapsed.
The Yu Zhou Qi Hang had just departed from Taiwan’s Keelung Port, bound for Zhangzhou in southeastern China’s Fujian Province. Only a few hours into its voyage, the vessel was found struggling 2.4 nautical miles northwest of Cape Yehliu amid strong winds and waves.
The heavy-lift ship, which was transporting three massive gantry cranes, began drifting perilously close to shore. Responding to the unfolding crisis, the CGA dispatched tugboats to assist, but the severe weather forced them to retreat. By evening, worsening conditions led the captain of Yu Zhou Qi Hang to abandon the ship.
All 17 crew members were successfully rescued by a CGA patrol boat and brought ashore in Keelung Port.
The grounding marks the second significant incident involving Yu Zhou Qi Hang this month.
On October 14, the vessel collided with a gantry crane at Keelung Port’s Berth W20 while attempting to dock, collapsing one crane at the berth and damaging another aboard the ship.
Fortunately, no injuries or oil spills occurred, but the Taiwan Transportation Safety Board (TTSB) classified the event as a major marine occurrence, prompting an investigation.
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