OOCL Sunflower at Long Beach: Container Stack Collapse After March 3 Pacific Incident - News and Statistics

Mar 19, 2026

According to a report from The Maritime Executive, the ultra-large containership OOCL Sunflower entered the Port of Long Beach on March 18, two weeks after a container stack collapse in the Pacific Ocean. The vessel arrived with its forward-most stack collapsed and missing containers, with recovery operations anticipated to begin the following day.

The incident occurred on March 3 near the southwestern tip of the Aleutian Islands, where the ship encountered high seas. While initial reports indicated 57 containers were lost, that figure was later revised downward to at least 32. Visual assessments showed the forward stack leaning to port with several containers crushed, though damage appeared confined to a single row at the bow.

After arriving off Southern California several days prior and anchoring, the ship underwent a U.S. Coast Guard inspection. The Coast Guard authorized additional lashings to secure the unstable containers and established a 100-yard safety zone during the vessel’s movement to berth due to concerns about further toppling.

The OOCL Sunflower is a new vessel in the Orient Overseas Container Lines fleet, delivered in January. It measures 367 meters in length and has a capacity of 16,828 TEU. The ship was on a transit from China, having last stopped in Taiwan on February 23, en route to California.

Industry data indicates a broader decline in container losses overboard, with 2024 seeing 576 units lost. Recent months, however, have seen several weather-related incidents involving container vessels in various regions, including a reported loss of 85 containers from a feeder ship in February 2026.

International regulations require vessel masters to promptly report such incidents to authorities, notify nearby ships of hazards, and provide damage assessments to their flag state. The crew of the OOCL Sunflower indicated that safety concerns delayed a full assessment until port arrival.

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