Beneath the clear blue waters of the Port of Long Beach in the United States, at least 25 containers lie silently on the seabed, while another 32 have been successfully salvaged. This major maritime accident, which occurred on September 9, has entered its sixth day of rescue and salvage operations.

At 8:48 a.m. local time on September 9, a serious accident occurred on the container ship "Mississippi" docked at Terminal G of the Port of Long Beach, with as many as 75 containers falling into the sea. At the time of the accident, the ship, which had just arrived from Yantian Port in China across the Pacific Ocean, was conducting operations.

The U.S. Coast Guard, Long Beach Fire Department, Long Beach Police Department, Port of Long Beach Authority, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers quickly formed a joint command and rushed to the scene to launch an emergency response. As of September 15, workers had successfully recovered 32 sunken containers.

The Portuguese-flagged container ship "Mississippi" is a new vessel built in 2024. It is owned and managed by MPC Container Ships and chartered to ZIM Integrated Shipping Services (ZIM) for use.

The accident happened just a few hours after it arrived at the Port of Long Beach. At that time, the ship was carrying a total of 2,412 containers, and the accident caused the collapse of containers in two different cargo holds.

Among the containers that fell into the sea, 25 to 30 have sunk in the port area. The joint command is using sonar technology to detect the exact location of these sunken containers to ensure the safety of navigation in the waterway.

Some of the fallen containers hit an anti-pollution barge named "STAX2" moored beside the ship, which is used to collect ship emissions, causing fuel leakage from the barge.

Fortunately, by September 10, the leakage had been brought under control. Officials stated that no further leakage was detected. The accident only resulted in one minor injury, and no other casualties were reported.

The port quickly established a 500-yard safety zone around the accident ship and suspended cargo operations at Terminal G. However, operations at other terminals and the port remained unaffected and continued as normal.

At present, the cause of the accident is still under investigation. Although the accident occurred under good weather conditions, representatives of the port workers' union have ruled out the possibility of operational errors by dock workers.

The U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are jointly leading the accident investigation. Investigators will carefully analyze various possible factors, including loading and unloading operation standards, the effectiveness of lashing equipment, and the condition of the ship.

In a statement, ZIM Integrated Shipping Services said, "ZIM is actively cooperating with local port authorities and relevant agencies to control the situation and assess any potential environmental impact."