Operations at a Port of Rotterdam terminal were briefly disrupted after seven empty containers fell from an ultra-large container vessel onto an LNG bunkering ship.

According to details provided by the port, five containers fell from Hapag-Lloyd's Bangkok Express vessel and onto the aft deck of LNG bunkering vessel K. Lotus on February 6. Two other containers fell into the water. The accident forced the Port of Rotterdam to close its Prinses Amaliahaven terminal for two hours while recovery efforts took place.

The incident was said to have occurred during a regular bunkering operation from the K. Lotus to the Bangkok Express. The containers reportedly struck the accommodation section of the K. Lotus, rather than its LNG area, and no injuries were reported. 

"The safety procedures surrounding LNG bunkering are very strict and extensive," a spokesperson for the port told SupplyChainBrain. "This type of bunkering vessel is additionally protected against potential incidents through multiple safety measures."

It's unclear what caused the container stack to collapse, although the Dutch Safety Board, the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate, and the Port of Rotterdam Authority are investigating the incident. The Bangkok Express has since left the Port of Rotterdam, while the K. Lotus has remained docked to repair damage that it sustained to its mooring system.