Typhoon Meranti causes chaos at Port of Kaohsiung

The typhoon caused a 14,000-TEU containership to destroy two quay cranes at the Port of Kaohsiung’s sixth container terminal after the vessel slammed into them, and local port officials believe the terminal could be out of operation for weeks.    Typhoon Meranti wreaked havoc on the Port of Kaohsiung in Taiwan Wednesday, blowing over several containers stored at a yard in Kaohsiung’s Siaogang District, and causing 10 vessels in Kaohsiung Harbor to break loose from their moorings, Focus Taiwan reported.
   One of the vessels was the 14,000-TEU YM Wind, which drifted to the sixth container terminal. The vessel destroyed two cranes at the terminal after ramming into them, maritime news outlet Splash 24/7 reported. Consequently, local port officials believe the terminal could be out of operation for weeks.
   The YM Wind was ordered by Seaspan and was scheduled to be delivered to Taiwanese liner carrier Yang Ming next year on a 10-year time charter. The delivery will now be later than originally planned, Splash 24/7 reported.
   The state-owned port operator Taiwan International Ports Corp said all 10 vessels that broke loose from their moorings have now been secured, according to Focus Taiwan.
   A Taiwan Red Cross spokeswoman said the typhoon left one person dead and 44 injured in Taiwan, CNN reported.
   After sweeping past the southern tip of Taiwan, Typhoon Meranti made landfall in Xiamen City in east China’s Fujian Province at 3:05 a.m. local time with gales up to 48 meters per second, China’s Xinhua News Agency reported. “At around 6:00 a.m., the winds abated,” Xinhua said. “Streets in Xiamen are scattered with glass shards, broken tree branches and blown down billboards.”