On July 9, the 190 meter long bulk carrier Tian Sheng 18 allided with the 90 meter long, 4172 dwt tanker Shuang Long Hai on the Yangtze River at Changzhou, China. The Shuang Long Hai suffered a hull breach and broken cargo pipe resulting in a fire on board the tanker. All 15 crew on board the tanker were able to escape. Fire fighters were able to extinguish the blaze by the following day.
Authorities placed booms around the tanker to contain any pollution released.
The 207 meter long, 34183 dwt container ship APL Jeddah allided with a quay at Hong Kong, China. The APL Jeddah had arrived at Kaohsiung Port 58 and was being assisted to the pier by a pilot when it suffered a power loss. The APL Jeddah’s bow struck the pier resulting in damage to the pier and boxship.
The bulbous bow sustained a significant dent while the pier had a section destroyed. No reports of injuries and no pollution was reported.
On May 29, the 80 meter long cargo vessel Xingyun 789 broke-in-two and sank in Bohai Bay near the Tianjin Caofeidian oil field, China. The Xingyun 789 had been proceeding with a cargo of gravel/sand in Bohai Bay. The vessel had been battling rough conditions with strong winds and waves reaching 4 meters. Waves continuously swept over the decks allowing water ingress into the holds. A short time later the vessel was flooded and in danger of sinking. The vessel sent out a distress call requesting urgently to be rescued. Their call was received by the oil field authorities who dispatched two offshore supply vessels to the scene.
The offshore vessels arrived on scene and found the Xingyun 789 low in the water. As the rescuers got closer to the Xingyun 789, a large bang could be heard as the Xingyun 789 suffered structural failure at one of the cargo holds splitting the vessel in two. The hull failure was so sudden that 2 crew fell into the sea while 3 more were just able to hang on precariously to the stern section. The rescue boats pulled the two crew from the water and were able to rescue one off the stern. However, conditions were just too difficult to reach the remaining 2 crew on the stern. Authorities dispatched a rescue helicopter which was able to hoist the 2 remaining crew to safety. All the crew of the Xingyun 789 were receiving medical care. No further details reported.
