An inland container ship collided with the Willemsbrug in Rotterdam around 08:45 on Wednesday morning, 11 September. Five containers fell into the water of the Nieuwe Maas and sank. A salvage operation took place the same day to recover them.
The vessel was subsequently berthed at the Noordereiland. The cause of the incident is still under investigation. The Seaport Police and the Port of Rotterdam Authority are investigating the exact circumstances of the incident.
Schip verliest containers onder Willemsbrug in Rotterdam 😱 pic.twitter.com/yPekEZJ1YX
— ★ MCMLXXVIII (@SMNVNDK) September 11, 2024
The container ship lost five empty containers due to the collision. Initially, only one of the five sank. The location of this container was soon after determined by a sounding vessel (a vessel that can measure the depth of the port).
Also read: Inland container ship hits bridge in Rotterdam and loses three containers
However, the other containers soon all filled with water and sank as well. They were all located by the Port Authority soon after. The Port Authority had removed all five containers by Wednesday evening. The salvage operation did not impact shipping traffic on the river.
Picture: Willemsbrug in Rotterdam (photo by Steven Lek, Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license).
Also read: Fog and single-point failure lead to allision with bridge support
