Container Shipping Facing Severe Safety Challenges as Major Incidents Modify Industry Standards

NTSB Determines Loose Wire Contributed to Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse

On November 18th 2025, the National Transportation Safety Board reached their decision that one loose wire in the electrical system of 984-foot containership Dali caused the catastrophic collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024. Investigators established that wire label banding prevented proper insertion into terminal block spring-clamp gates creating an inadequate electrical connection and leading to unexpected breaker opening.

A loose wire set off a chain of events which resulted in two vessel blackouts, rendering propulsion and steering near the 2.37-mile-long bridge inoperative simultaneously. Following the initial blackout, Dali began drifting toward Pier 17 as pilots and bridge team members attempted course corrections, but their actions proved ineffective due to loss of propulsion; later in the evening a significant portion of bridge collapsed into Patapsco River killing six highway workers while injuring others onboard.

The National Transportation Safety Board emphasized the incident was avoidable and issued comprehensive safety recommendations to several organizations involved: United States Coast Guard, Federal Highway Administration, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (a Japanese professional organization for highway engineers and transport officials), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Synergy Marine WAGO Corporation. Investigators observed that at 984 feet long the Dali was approximately 10 times larger than Blue Nagoya which caused only minor damage upon striking this bridge in 1980 - emphasizing how vulnerable old infrastructure has become when faced with modern mega-container vessels.

One Henry Hudson Fire Contained Following Major Port of Los Angeles Incident

On November 21, 2025, while docked at Berth 218 in Los Angeles' Port of Los Angeles, the container ship ONE Henry Hudson experienced a major cargo hold fire that required multiple agencies - Los Angeles Fire Department, U.S. Coast Guard, Port of Los Angeles Police Department and Long Beach Port - to respond. LAFD sent nearly 200 firefighters, hazmat units, search and rescue teams and heavy rescue assets to battle this inaccessible fire in subdeck areas.

At approximately 8 pm on November 21, a mid-ship explosion caused lights and cranes on board to lose power, prompting responders to account for all 23 crew members without injuries being reported. At approximately midnight on November 22 (despite air quality readings remaining within normal ranges), San Pedro and Wilmington residents were issued a precautionary shelter-in-place order which was lifted around 6:30 am after conditions stabilized.

At 3:00 a.m. on November 22, Unified Command agencies executed an intensive large-scale operation to take control of the ONE Henry Hudson vessel and move it beyond Vincent Thomas Bridge with fire suppression, safety monitoring, structural integrity inspections and air monitoring ongoing simultaneously. After successfully anchoring near Angel's Gate Lighthouse at 4:43 am under agency oversight, fire suppression operations continued under close surveillance until by November 26 the fire had been substantially contained and returned back into port at Yusen Terminal in Los Angeles.

Suez Canal Transit Activity Reaches Record Levels for 2017

Container ship transits through the Suez Canal experienced near-year-low levels during the final week of November 2025, as reported by Xeneta Chief Analyst Peter Sand. This period saw two of the lowest boxship transit numbers recorded for all of 2025 at this critical maritime chokepoint. This trend highlights ongoing challenges related to global container shipping route dynamics and trade patterns affecting one of its key maritime chokepoints.