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Red Sea crisis escalates container losses as ships divert to African routes

Red Sea crisis escalates container losses as ships divert to African routes

Posted on September 20, 2024 |

Container losses are expected to rise from 2023’s record low due to rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope and bad weather.

Over 200 containers were lost from at least five ships after rerouting around Africa due to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

In 2023, container losses were at a historic low of 221, compared to an average of 1,500 annually.

Even though losses are a small percentage of the 250 million containers shipped yearly, they can still cause major disruptions to coastal areas.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is reviewing a three-year study on how to reduce container losses.

The TopTier project, led by the Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (Marin), studied 44 incidents of container loss.

The study found that inadequate crew training on handling parametric rolling, a type of dangerous rolling, contributes to container loss.