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A huge container ship lost propulsion in New York’s harbour and came to a halt close to the Verrazzano Bridge over the weekend – in an eerily similar scenario to the deadly disaster in Baltimore less than two weeks earlier.
The 1,145-foot-long APL Qingdao lost propulsion in the waters around New York City on Friday evening, the US Coast Guard told The Independent.
The Coast Guard said that it received a report at about 8.30pm about the incident, while the huge vessel was making its way through the Kill Van Kull waterway.
The Kill Van Kull channel is a three-mile long, 1,000 feet wide tidal strait between Staten Island in New York City and Bayonne, New Jersey – which connects Newark Bay and Upper New York Bay. It is considered one of the most heavily travelled waterways in the port area, the United States Army said.
The massive ship was able to regain propulsion and was assisted by three towing vessels to “safely anchor in Stapleton Anchorage, outside of the navigable channel just north of the Verrazzano Bridge,” the Coast Guard said.
The Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge with a different vessel under it, the CMA CGM Marco Polo, in 2021 (REUTERS)
“These towing vessels were escorting the vessel as a routine safety measure, which is a common practice for large vessels departing their berth.”
The ship came to a rest and anchored near the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, the 13,700-foot-span bridge connecting Brooklyn and Staten Island, NYC Parks states.
The 12-year-old ship, registered in Malta, is now currently en route to Norfolk, Virginia, according to Vessel Finder.
The Dali crashed into The Francis Scott Key Bridge after it lost power (AP)
Repairs were made and the ship’s system was assessed as fully operational before it departed New York’s harbour again on Sunday morning, CBS reported.
The Coast Guard said that the ship did not lose power, just propulsion, unlike the Dali container ship which appeared to lose its power as it approached the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore in the early hours of 26 March.
As a result, the Dali slammed into the bridge, causing it to collapse into the water of the Patapsco River.
Six construction workers died in the tragedy and the collapse has had a huge knock-on effect on the marine-based industries within the area.
The Independent has contacted the US Coast Guard for further information.
