On the 1st December 2020, the Japanese flagged containership, ‘ONE APUS’ lost a number of containers, some of which are believed to be Dangerous Goods containers, as a result of severe weather conditions on the night of Monday 30th November 2020 at 2315LT approximately 1600NM North West of Hawaii, USA.
“Chidori Ship Holding LLC as owners and NYK Shipmanagement Pte Ltd as managers of the container vessel ONE Apus confirmed that the ship is proceeding to the port of Kobe, Japan with an ETA of December 8, after encountering severe weather on Monday, November 30, 2020, and losing sections of its load,” Ocean Network Express stated.
The priority remains on getting the vessel and crew safely to port. Once berthed, it’s expected to take some time to offload the dislodged containers that remain on board. Then a thorough assessment will be made on the exact number and type of containers that have been lost or damaged.
Whilst it remains unsafe for the crew to conduct close-quarter inspections of the impacted container bays at sea, it is estimated that the number of lost or damaged units could exceed 1,900, of which some 40 are believed to be Dangerous Goods containers.
Once the ONE Apus is in port and deemed safe, a full investigation will be conducted into this incident in conjunction with the Flag State and the relevant maritime authorities, ONE added.
Read another article about containers lost at sea: World Shipping Council containers lost at sea 2020 report issued and shows a decrease