Crane Collapses Onto MSC Feeder in Chinese Port

Port officials and Chinese authorities are investigating a gantry crane malfunction at the port of Yantian that occurred on September 16. The incident resulted in no injuries, but several containers were knocked into the harbor, and others were damaged aboard the MSC feeder ship, MSC Riona. The vessel, with a capacity of 1,730 TEU, was built in 1998 and acquired by MSC in 2021, operating a route between China, Singapore, and the Philippines.

The gantry crane was undergoing preparation for container handling when its arm collapsed onto the container stacks on the MSC vessel. Images show significant damage to containers both in the harbor and on the ship. Following the incident, port officials suspended operations for the MSC ship and two other gantry cranes of the same age and manufacturer at berth 2. Operations were disrupted at that particular area of the port but continued as normal elsewhere in the port complex.

While the vessel does not seem to have played a role in the malfunction, it is worth noting that in May 2024, Chinese officials in Shenzhen had cited the vessel for multiple deficiencies, particularly related to its main propulsion engines. However, the ship received a clean report the following day during a subsequent inspection, indicating that the recent incident at the port of Yantian was likely unrelated to the vessel’s operational condition.

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