Salvage Efforts Underway After Container Spill at Port of Long Beach

Salvage operations have begun to clear a channel for safe vessel transit to and from Pier G at the Port of Long Beach following Tuesday morning’s cargo loss incident that saw approximately 75 shipping containers fall from the cargo ship Mississippi.

The Unified Command, consisting of federal, state, local agencies and vessel representatives, convened Wednesday at the Port of Long Beach Joint Command and Control Center to coordinate the response effort.

Initial recovery efforts have yielded results, with two sunken cargo containers retrieved from the basin floor on Wednesday. Response teams also secured a fuel leak from an at-berth emissions control barge moored alongside the container vessel, which contained approximately 2,000 gallons of renewable diesel.

The Portugal-registered Mississippi, operated by ZIM, had just arrived at Long Beach early Tuesday after completing its voyage from Yantian, China. The vessel was carrying 2,412 containers when containers began falling at 8:48 a.m. Tuesday.

“This is still a dynamic situation with many unknowns,” said Capt. Stacey Crecy, Commander, U.S. Coast Guard, Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach. “However, we have contingency plans in place and are working with the intent to restore all port activities as soon and as safely as possible”.

A 500-yard safety zone has been established around the Mississippi, while the Coast Guard is broadcasting hourly marine safety information to alert mariners of navigation hazards. The Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board are leading the investigation to determine the cause of the incident.

Sonar surveys are being conducted to locate approximately 25 to 30 containers now submerged in the harbor, with recovered containers moved to a designated area surrounded by a boom.

The scope of the disruption seems to be limited to the single pier. “Although this incident was at one berth at the Port, we will continue to act with caution as we recover containers and restore full operations at the Pier G terminal as quickly and safely as possible,” said Port of Long Beach CEO Mario Cordero.

Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson noted, “We are cognizant of the seriousness of any interruption of cargo flow at the Port of Long Beach, the nation’s second-busiest seaport.”

Cargo operations at the Port have remained mostly unaffected by the incident except within the safety zone. The Port of Long Beach has 22 cargo terminals, with six handling containers.

Eyewitness footage captured the ship listing as two rows of containers collapsed, causing dozens to fall overboard. There has been one reported minor injury related to the incident.

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