Massive Cargo Ship Loses Power in New York City Near Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge

A massive cargo ship lost power in New York City waters just two weeks after the Dali ship lost power and crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland.

The United States Coast Guard reported that it received a report that the 89,000-ton Qingdao containership lost power around 8:30 pm on Saturday while navigating the waters between Bayonne, New Jersey, and Staten Island, New York.

A New York tugboat captain told John Konrad, the CEO of maritime-centered news site gCaptain, that the “Container ship APL QINGDAO lost power while transiting New York harbor. They had three escort tugs, but three more were needed to bring her under control.”

“They regained power & were brought to anchor near the Verrazano bridge.” added the tugboat captain.

LOOK:

BREAKING: A NY tugboat captain has reported to @gCaptain “container ship APL QINGDAO lost power while transiting New York harbor. They had 3 escort tugs but 3 more were needed to bring her under control. They regained power & were brought to anchor near the verrazano bridge” pic.twitter.com/Z2IP04xmLs

— John Ʌ Konrad V (@johnkonrad) April 7, 2024

Per The New York Post:

A massive container ship lost power in the waters around New York City and was brought to a rest near the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge Saturday night — less than two weeks after failure on another massive cargo vessel caused it to smash into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge.

The US Coast Guard confirmed that its Vessel Traffic Service received a report that the 89,000-ton M/V Qingdao lost propulsion about 8:30 p.m. as it traversed Kill Van Kull waterway — the shipping lane between Staten Island and Bayonne, New Jersey.

An image shared on X by John Konrad, CEO of maritime-focused news outlet gCaptain, shows the 1,100-foot Qingdao floating uncomfortably close to the span that connects Brooklyn and Staten Island.

In response to the power failure, three tug boats were dispatched to bring the Qingdao under control.

The ship is owned by the French shipping company CMA CGM Group and is registered in Malta.

One major difference between Baltimore and New York is the US Coast Guard operates Vessel Traffic Service in NY

VTS is like air traffic control. They monitor all ships and tugs and can respond quickly to emergencies

Baltimore did not have VTS servicehttps://t.co/UM5KoPNzsd

— John Ʌ Konrad V (@johnkonrad) April 7, 2024

The Qingdao containership is now continuing its journey to Charleston, South Carolina, after it regained its power and passed a safety propulsion system certification test.