Ships Diverting From Red Sea Dangers Face Rough Seas & Delays Around Africa

Ships rerouting around Africa’s southern tip to avoid Red Sea dangers are experiencing extreme weather, causing major disruptions.

The harsh weather has already caused one vessel to run aground and another to lose 44 containers overboard, with an additional 30 damaged.

CMA CGM SA reported that its vessel, CMA CGM Benjamin Franklin, encountered unexpectedly harsh weather off the South African coast earlier this week, causing container losses and damage.

The ship remains seaworthy, and no casualties or pollution have been reported.

The vessel is on its way to Cape Town for an assessment and necessary safety measures before continuing its journey.

AP Moller Maersk A/S also encountered delays, with one of its ships unable to reach Cape Town due to unfavourable weather conditions.

Stormy weather along Africa’s coastline has interrupted a crucial route used by ships to avoid attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militants in the Red Sea.

As the weather improves, traffic in South Africa is likely to return to normal.

The South African Maritime Safety Authority has launched rapid salvage operations to prevent an oil spill from the grounded Ultrabulk handysize Ultra Galaxy, transporting fertilizer from Walvis Bay, Namibia, to Der es Salaam, Tanzania.

The vessel’s 18 Filipino crew were safely rescued after abandoning the ship.

Clarkson Research Services Ltd’s data shows a significant drop in deep-sea cargo vessels arriving at the Cape of Good Hope.

The number dropped to 18 earlier this week, the lowest single-day total since October.

Some ships delayed their journeys, while others took longer routes around the coast to avoid the bad weather.

According to Lloyd’s List Intelligence data, containership transits over the Cape of Good Hope dropped sharply, from 26 to 16 on July 6th, 2024, and there were no transits for the next three days.

By July 10th, passages had resumed, and nine boxships had passed through the area.

The figures released on July 11th indicated a return to normal passage-making.

The harsh weather, caused by a strong cyclone and below-normal temperatures, caused high waves and strong winds, disrupting shipping routes.

Isaac Hankes, a senior weather analyst at the London Stock Exchange Group, confirmed the cyclone’s significant impact but added that it was not unusual in the statistics.

Another hurricane is expected to hit South Africa later this week, possibly worsening shipping difficulties.

Maersk had alerted customers about the impending strong winds and high waves, advising them to seek shelter or change their course to avoid the affected areas. These caused delays over the next three days.

While the halt in sailings across southern Africa is not likely to have a significant impact on supply chains, it has added up to three days to extended passage durations, putting extra pressure on carriers’ efforts to maintain their networks.

Ports in Antwerp, Hamburg, and Rotterdam are also experiencing high capacity and extended wait times.

Reference: Bloomberg

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