21, reports were confirmed that up to 750 containers were lost off of the Maersk Essen as it was midway through the Pacific bound for Los Angeles when high winds and rough seas hit. ![]() High winds and churning waves can wreak havoc on container ships in the open seas. “We want to make sure vessels can remain in place safely.” “This is something we’re keeping an eye on,” McIntyre-Coble said. They will also work hand-in-hand with local and county agencies such as the Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol. McIntyre-Coble said the Coast Guard, which routinely patrols their area of responsibility to ensure national security, will have more planes and boats on the water. “When you have winds and an increased sea state, sometimes the best call is to find a landmass to block the direction of the wind flow.” “Those calls are made by captains,” McIntyre-Coble said. On Monday, ships moved from their anchorages to safer spots such as in front of Catalina and San Clemente islands. Once they drop anchor, they’re pretty much set,” McIntyre-Coble said. “The crews are highly trained and capable. Locations must be deep enough to allow a large cargo ship to anchor safely, and often range between 40-70 feet. The ships and their crews will be directed to 26 chartered anchorages and given instructions by the exchange. These anchorages are staggered starting about half-a-mile from the ports’ entrance, and south to locations at sea, parallel to such cities as Newport Beach and Laguna Beach along the Southern California coast. With a current backlog of ships waiting to get into the ports, ships are given direction by the exchange on where to anchor when outside the port. “With all the ships lined up, we are aware and have stepped up our presence and patrols,” McIntyre-Coble said. The exchange is staffed with both Coast Guard and civilian personnel. The Coast Guard works in tandem with the Marine Exchange of Southern California, based in San Pedro, whose job it is to manage the movement of vessels in and out of the two ports. Ben McIntyre-Coble, adding that the Coast Guard’s responsibility is to ensure the safety of life at sea, among other duties. “The weather is scheduled to be pretty dicey,” said Lt. The sight of cargo ships off the south Orange County coastline drew plenty of curiosity from residents along the shoreline. 25, brought with it powerful wind gusts out of the west, Louttit said, forcing 24 ships to request clearance to move from anchorage to seek more protection. ![]() Infections since December 2020 and in the first 25 days of 2021 have “almost surpassed the total cases reported in the final eight months in 2020,” according to Port of Los Angeles spokesman Phillip Sanfield. Complicating the high volumes are increasing COVID-19 cases hitting longshore workers. ![]() Both have battled to fend off bottlenecks as cargo volumes surged by about 50% in the last half of 2020. It’s been a challenging new year for the twin ports. With heavy rains and mountain snow anticipated, “It will be horrible for driving, but the wind is not expected to get high enough” to impact the record number of ships waiting at anchor at the twin sea hubs, he said. Earlier this week, however, 63-mph winds forced cargo ships to leave their anchorage spots for more sheltered moorings in front of Catalina Island and off of Dana Point along the Orange County coastline - where topography blocks some of the wind force. That shouldn’t be severe enough to pose problems from a shipping perspective, he said. ![]() Winds from the newest storm are expected to reach about 40 mph, said Kip Louttit, director of the Marine Exchange of Southern California.
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