Cargo operations have been temporarily suspended at Pier G, as operations continue to ensure the safety of dockworkers and other Port personnel.
A Unified Command has been established to respond to an incident Tuesday morning that caused an estimated 67 shipping containers to fall off the cargo ship Mississippi and into the water at Pier G within the Port of Long Beach just after 9 a.m.
Representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Long Beach Fire Department, Long Police Department, Port of Long Beach, Army Corps of Engineers and other commercial representatives are responding to the incident.
A smaller clean air barge was connected to the Mississippi at the time of the accident and was damaged by several fallen containers.
No injuries have been reported. No other terminals or Port operations have been impacted.
Cargo operations have been temporarily suspended at Pier G, as operations continue to ensure the safety of dockworkers and other Port personnel.
The Coast Guard established a safety zone 500 yards around the Mississippi and is issuing marine safety broadcasts every hour to alert other vessels of the navigation and safety hazards. The Coast Guard is also leading the effort to determine the cause of the incident.
Two sunken cargo containers were retrieved from the bottom of the basin on Wednesday. Additionally, responders secured the source of a fuel leak originating from an at-berth emissions control barge moored alongside the container vessel. The tank contained about 2,000 gallons of renewable diesel.
Cargo operations at the Port have been mostly unaffected by the incident, except in a 500-yard safety zone placed around the Mississippi, which was carrying 2,412 containers at the time of the incident. Containers began falling at 8:48 a.m. Tuesday. The Coast Guard, Jacobsen Port Pilots and the Port of Long Beach are working together to facilitate navigation in accordance with the safety zone.
There are 22 cargo terminals at the Port of Long Beach. Six handle containers.
“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. “Thanks to the quick response by all involved – first the workers and companies right at the docks working the ship, then on to all of the agencies who have responded to protect life, safety and commerce.”
