Maersk said in a customer advisory said the 2010-built, 13,100 teu, Maersk Eindhoven had suffered an engine stop in harsh weather on 17 February near Japan while enroute from Xiamen to Los Angeles.
The Danish shipowner said preliminary reports indicated a number of containers had been lost overboard, but did not given any indication of the scale of the loss. However, 2M alliance partner MSC said advice from the vessel operator suggested “several hundred” containers had been lost overboard.
“We are awaiting further updates from the vessel regarding potentially lost or damaged containers and will share the details once available. All crew members have been reported to be safe and the ship’s propulsion has been restored,” Maersk said.
The shipping line said that it was assessing the nearest suitable port options in Asia to berth the vessel.
It is the latest in series of major container losses on the transpacific trade in recent months including the Maersk Essen which was reported to have lost 750 containers overboard in January and the ONE Apus which lost 1,816 containers in the Pacific on 30 November, as well as number of smaller incidents. The incidents have coincided with a period of unprecendented demand growth on the transpacific trade with vessels loaded to maximum capacity.
The numbers of containers lost overboard in both 2020 and now 2021 are set to exceed the average of 1,382 containers were lost per year between 2008 and 2019 according to the World Shipping Council.
