U.S. Coast Guard members from Puget Sound teamed up with the Canadian Coast Guard after receiving a call Friday that 40 cargo containers fell off shipping vessel Zim Kingston about 40 miles from the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
Prince Rupert Marine Communication and Traffic Services alerted U.S. Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound at 12:49 a.m. after the vessel — which was heading to Vancouver, British Columbia — tilted 35 degrees in heavy swells, according to USCG.
Air Station Port Angeles crew members found 35 containers and sent a self-locating buoy to track the containers in the water.
No crew members were injured, according to the USCG. At least two of the containers that fell had hazardous material, the U.S. agency said. Zim Kingston is currently moored near Victoria, British Columbia.
Capt. Daniel Broadhurst, chief of incident management for the 13th Coast Guard District, said the agency continues to monitor the situation and work with its Canadian and tribal partners to respond to the incident.
Meanwhile, both coast guards have said that they plan to regularly broadcast warnings to mariners alerting them of the floating containers.
