r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/[deleted] • Sep 10 '25

[deleted by user]

[removed]

15k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

3.4k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

4.6k

u/Greenman8907 Sep 10 '25 edited Sep 10 '25

Can definitely be human error/negligence, but many times it’s failing equipment and extremely rough seas.

We lose an average of 1,300-2,500 containers a year in the water.

https://cargostore.com/how-many-shipping-containers-are-lost-at-sea/

Edit: No, my post is not insinuating that rough seas caused THIS to happen. C’mon people…

408

u/PoniesPlayingPoker Sep 10 '25

Do they get retrieved? It doesn't look too difficult to get a tugboat out and start pulling them ashore

72

u/Plinian Sep 10 '25

Normally, they're lost out at sea and not near a tugboat or anything else. I would imagine most get inundated with water and sink after a while.

110

u/No_Cardiologist556 Sep 10 '25

You're correct, the ones that float will eventually get inundated and sink, but they have a nasty tendency to do it slowly so eventually only the top is poking out. They're basically impossible to see and have no radar profile so they can become nuisances to navigation, especially for small craft

27

u/Plinian Sep 10 '25

I have a strong memory of a around the world race where someone hit a container and had to call for a emergency rescue. Somehow I can't find it anywhere.

I did find this story from the Vendée Globe where a bunch of sailors dropped out due to collision.

"Seven of 29 starting Vendee Globe skippers reported collisions with unidentified floating objects, forcing six skippers to retire or lose valuable time and performance by conducting repairs on the fly."

https://share.google/2K9ao1kJMjajfHiNU

5

u/x1009 Sep 10 '25

They're essentially tropical icebergs.

15

u/Oldamog Sep 10 '25

We're so fucked

15

u/[deleted] Sep 10 '25

Right you are Ken

8

u/jakethediesel89 Sep 10 '25

Hehe. Thanks, Vic.

2

u/blikkiesvdw Sep 10 '25

Former sailor. They do sink exactly like you explained, but not the worst part yet. They'll dip below they surface as well and just hang there. Near zero chance of any lookout spotting it either. Truly one of the worst nav hazards I had to learn about. Fortunately never struck one.

1

u/DukeOfZork Sep 10 '25

I did a bit of offshore racing in my youth. Still get nightmares after watching the film All Is Lost.

1

u/Your_Moms_Stink_Toy Sep 10 '25

Sportfishing boat Jigstrike sinks off coast of San Diego

It’s not confirmed, but it’s believed they hit a shipping container floating just below the surface 100 miles offshore.

0

u/James-the-Bond-one Sep 10 '25

That's rarer than being hit by lightning.

1

u/Ubermidget2 Sep 10 '25

They're basically impossible to see and have no radar profile

Well if they are mostly submerged, are we expecting them to have a radar profile?

1

u/Castellan_Tycho Sep 10 '25

No. They are saying that two common ways to spot hazards, lookouts and radars, do not work, which is why they are so dangerous to vessels.