Following a container fire at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the Coast Guard collaborated with port partners to identify shipping containers containing undeclared hazardous materials.
On March 4, around 8:20 p.m. PST, watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach received a report of a burning shipping container. On March 10, the container was scheduled to be loaded onto a ship bound for China.
The fire was put out by the Los Angeles Fire Department. Those efforts, however, were hampered because the container was not labeled as carrying hazardous materials. The container’s bill of lading stated that it was carrying “synthetic resins.” Further investigation revealed that it actually contained approximately 18,000 pounds of used lithium-ion batteries, which are classified as a regulated hazardous material.
“As a result of that incident, we were able to determine a larger issue at hand — a more widespread undeclared hazmat issue across the board,” James A. Frank, senior chief marine science technician with Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach, told FreightWaves.
According to Frank, the shipper, in this case, violated regulations by failing to properly label and declare hazardous materials.
“The container was stacked. As you might expect, they [firefighters] had to move other containers out of the way, get ahold of the container that was on fire, and figure out exactly how to combat the fire without exacerbating it,” Frank added.
The fire took a few hours to put out, but no other containers were damaged, and there was no major disruption to port operations.
To identify and inspect all of the shipper’s containers in the port, the Coast Guard collaborated with the responsible party, Customs and Border Protection, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration, and port officials. The Coast Guard placed a hold on the shipper’s containers until proper labeling and declaration procedures were followed.
“Undeclared hazardous materials pose a significant risk to the safety of cargo vessels, ports, and first responders,” said Capt. Rebecca Ore, port captain, and commanding officer of US Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach, in a press release. “The Coast Guard, in collaboration with our federal, state, and local partners, is committed to working with all shippers to ensure hazardous materials are properly marked and packaged for safe transportation.”
As a result of the fire, Frank stated that the Coast Guard has been “controlling and scrutinizing” the cargo movement of three other shipping companies — totaling about 40 containers — that use various facilities throughout the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. All containers were held until they could be properly packaged and labeled. Six of the containers were found to be carrying undeclared hazardous materials, according to officials.
Frank said he can’t name the shippers under investigation or what punishments they might face until the investigation is completed and officials determine the cause of the fire. He did, however, warn them that they could face warnings on the low end and criminal charges on the high end.
According to Frank, hazardous materials violations have most likely occurred “since the beginning of maritime commerce” and resurface from time to time. According to him, the majority of containers passing through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are properly labeled, but shippers occasionally try to cut corners, usually to save money.
“The real danger is that the container could have been below deck on a ship in the middle of the ocean,” Frank explained.
The Coast Guard issued Marine Safety Alert 01-22 last week regarding the dangers of transporting and disposing of lithium-ion batteries.
