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Port Houston closes two terminals after positive coronavirus test

The Bayport and Barbours Cut terminals are closed while an investigation is being conducted.

The Bayport Container Terminal at Port Houston was closed yesterday after a worker tested positive for the coronavirus. Image: Port of Houston Authority

Port Houston announced it was closing two terminals after an employee who worked at both sites tested positive for the coronavirus.

The Bayport and Barbours Cut terminals are closed while an investigation is being conducted, port officials said in a statement.

“The Port Authority has learned that someone who worked at both Barbours Cut and Bayport container terminals tested positive for COVID-19. In an abundance of caution, both public terminals are closed and operations are temporarily suspended while a thorough investigation is being conducted,” according to a statement from the Port of Houston Authority late Wednesday night, March 18.

Port Houston’s other public facilities, as well as the 200-plus private terminals and the Houston Ship Channel, are still operating.


“All decisions on vessel schedules, demurrage, and all others will be determined as soon as possible,” officials said.

The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and the Bayport Container Terminal are both owned and operated by the Port of Houston Authority.

Port Houston is a major economic driver for the Houston area. It is one of the largest U.S. container port on the Gulf of Mexico, handling nearly 70% of the containers moving through the gulf, according to the port authority.

The port was recently awarded nearly $22 million in federal grants for a project at the Bayport Container Terminal.


Noi Mahoney

Noi Mahoney is a Texas-based journalist who covers cross-border trade, logistics and supply chains for FreightWaves. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in English in 1998. Mahoney has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working for newspapers in Maryland and Texas. Contact [email protected]