Almost 70 Containers Fall Off Ship in California Port

More than 60 containers toppled off a cargo ship Tuesday morning in the Port of Long Beach, tumbling overboard and floating in the water. The shipping containers fell off a vessel named the Mississippi shortly before 9am and no injuries have been reported, according to Port of Long Beach spokesperson Art Marroquin. An estimated 67 containers were in the water, the US Coast Guard said in a news release. Long Beach, about 20 miles south of Los Angeles, is one of the busiest seaports in the country, with 40% of all shipping containers in the United States coming through it or the Los Angeles port.

Some of the containers appeared to have fallen on the STAX 2, an anti-pollution vessel that captures emissions, the AP reports. The barge was attached to the side of the Mississippi when the containers fell. The Pier G container terminal, one of six at the port, temporarily stopped unloading and loading ships as authorities worked to secure the containers. The Mississippi sails under the flag of Portugal and arrived in Long Beach after departing Aug. 26 from the Yantian port in Shenzhen, China, according to vessel tracking websites.

The Los Angeles Times reports that officials are scrambling to find out the cause of the incident, which happened just days after Asia Cargo News named Long Beach as North America's best West Coast seaport for the seventh year in a row. The Coast Guard, the Long Beach Fire Department, the Long Beach Police Department, and the Army Corps of Engineers are assisting the port's investigation, CBS News reports.