Port of Kaohsiung

Maritime pilots face mandatory alcohol testing following container ship accident at Taiwanese port

composite image showing ship's bow and damage to wharf pier
Health and Safety 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

A pilot who was found to be drunk on the job after a container ship slammed into a wharf at the Port of Kaohsiung, Monday, March 20, will not be charged by police, but all maritime pilots in Taiwan will face mandatory alcohol breath testing before starting work following the incident. According to Taiwan’s Chinese language press, Mr Hsu, the pilot in charge of guiding the 74,651-ton vessel Hyundai Tokyo, was found to have an alcohol level of 0.19 mg/l

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74,000-ton container ship crashes into wharf at Port of Kaohsiung: Pilot suspected drunk

Hyundai Tokyo approaches wharf at Port of Kaohsiung before collision
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A 74,651-ton container ship was seen approaching a wharf pier bow-first at an angle of 90 degrees before colliding with the steel-reinforced concrete structure at the Port of Kaohsiung yesterday, Monday, March 20. According to the Maritime and Port Bureau, the Cyprus-flagged Hyundai Tokyo  (IMO: 9305673, MMSI 212347000) crashed into Pier 77 at 9:05 am, causing damage to the dock and quay wall. The port controller had noticed that the speed of the ship was too fast and sent a

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Oil tanker listing in Port of Kaohsiung after collision with breakwater

oil tanker listing at Port of Kaohsiung
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

A 42,000 ton oil tanker began to take on water after colliding with a breakwater at the Port of Kaohsiung and damaging its hull, but there is little chance of oil pollution port authorities say. According to reports today, February 4, the Danish-flagged oil products tanker TORM EMILIE (IMO: 9277785) was entering the port on Tuesday, February 1, when it collided with the south dike breakwater, causing a hull breach, the harbor bureau said. The outer shell of the hull

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Container ship collision at Port of Kaohsiung causes crane collapse: one injured

container cranes collapsed at Port of Kaohsiung
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

One person was injured and two people were trapped in the wreckage after a container ship in the process of docking collided with another ship, causing one container crane to collapse, and badly damaging another at the Port of Kaohsiung today, June 3. At around 11:30 am the 316-meter-long, 86,679 gross tonnage container ship DURBAN, owned by OOCL Shipping Company, was attempting to dock at pier 66, when it sideswiped the 32,720 gross tonnage CONSTANCY (永明) belonging to Yangming Shipping,

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Ship launch doesn’t quite go to plan at Port of Kaohsiung

listing ship at launch
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

A ship suddenly tilted over precariously as soon as it hit the water during a launching ceremony at a shipyard in Kaohsiung Harbor this morning, March 27. Kaohsiung Harbor Police said that the 700-ton ocean-going fishing vessel “Shengfan 188” suddenly tilted over to a 45 degree angle when it was launched at the Sanyang Shipyard in Qijin District at around 11:00 am. Water almost reached the gunwales, and the ship was in danger of sinking. Two nearby tugboats immediately went

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1.6 million packs of contraband cigarettes seized from cargo ship intercepted near Dongsha Island

Tong Hang Number 6 intercepted by Coast Guard
Business and Economy 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

Coast Guard and customs officials have seized 1.6 million packs of contraband cigarettes from a Togo-flagged cargo vessel that was intercepted near Dongsha Island March 6. Coast Guard officers intercepted the ship after receiving intelligence that the 2,000 ton aggregates carrier TONG HANG No. 6 bound for Taiwan from Cambodia was carrying cigarettes manufactured in China. After intercepting the vessel on March 6, the Coast Guard escorted the ship to the Port of Kaohsiung. After arriving on March 9, customs

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Five missing after ship sinks in the Taiwan Strait

Taiwan Coast Guard officers retrieve an empty life raft after a ship sinks in the Taiwan Strait
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

Five Thai nationals were rescued and five are missing after a ship lost power in the Taiwan Strait, then sank while being towed to the Port of Kaohsiung last night, October 23. The Seatran Ferry 12, a Tuvulu-registered passenger – vehicular ferry, had been purchased in Japan, and was en route to Thailand when the main engine and auxiliary engines failed at around 11:00 am, yesterday. The ship’s crew contacted a shipping company and hired a tug to tow it

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Freighter runs aground on coast of southern Taiwan after crew abandons crippled ship

ship aground on coast of Kaohsiung City
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A crew of 13 was rescued from a freighter yesterday, after the drifting vessel began to list dangerously, then the ship ran aground after an attempt to tow the vessel failed. The Sierra-Leone-registered, 2,600 ton general-cargo freighter, Zhihai 8, lost power in the early hours of the morning, yesterday, October 12. The crew abandoned ship by life raft after the ship began listing severely to starboard, threatening to overturn. Coast Guard vessels and a helicopter were dispatched from the Port

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World’s largest container ship docks at Port of Kaohsiung

HMM Gdansk at Port of Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 2020
Business and Economy 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

The world’s largest container ship, HMM Gdansk docked in Kaohsiung Harbor this morning, setting a record for Taiwan’s largest port. The newly built, Korean-owned, Panama-flagged vessel is 399.9 meters long, 61 meters wide with a gross tonnage of 228,283 tons. It has a load capacity of 24,000 TEU (20-foot standard container unit). HMM Gdansk is the largest container ship to have berthed in Port of Kaohsiung. The previous record was set by the Benjamin Franklin, with a total length of

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Veteran Navy Ship sold for scrap

Chung Hai LST-201
Military Affairs 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A ship that took part in action in World War II as part of the US Navy, and during the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis in 1958 as part of the ROC Navy, was sold as scrap metal, despite protests from military historians and enthusiasts. The Chung Hai (LST-201) began life as the USS LST-755 tank landing ship in 1944, and was used by the US Navy in two landing operations in the Philippines. After World War II it was sold

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136 kilogram cocaine shipment intercepted at Port of Kaohsiung

cocaine shipment intercepted at Port of Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment , ,

Coast Guard investigators, along with customs officers and national police intercepted a shipment of cocaine at the Port of Kaohsiung two days ago, according to reports released today, November 5. Investigators were first tipped around six months ago that a transnational drug trafficking group planned to use the Port of Kaohsiung as a trans-shipment point for drug shipments from Central and South America. Coast Guard, Customs, and National Police formed a special group to investigate the claims. After relevant intelligence

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