One of the port of Port Elizabeth’s four ship to shore gantry cranes has been blown over and is blocking the entrance to the harbour.
The refurbished post Panamax gantry is lying at the end of the container quay, with most of the 30 to 40-metre-long boom lying in the entrance to the harbour.
This is a repeat of a similar incident around 20 years ago when the port was left with one gantry after the other had been blown along the rails and had then toppled when hitting the stop block.
According to Marine Traffic the larger vessels trapped in the port include the Maersk Vallvik, the general cargo Golden Karoo, and bulk carriers Gisela Oldendorff and Frederike Oldendorff.
Fuel supplies to the Eastern Cape should be secure for the next few days or weeks as one of the trapped vessels is fuel carrier. The Hamburg Sud Santa Ursula was due to dock in the afternoon of the 30th, and the Maersk Horizon on the 31st, according to Transnet Port Terminals.
During the time the crane toppled (between 06:30 and 7:30) the wind speed doubled within 15 minutes from 36 km/h to 76km/h and peaked at 103km. At the airport the wind hit an average of 102km/h. Flights were unaffected, however. The record for Port Elizabeth is 139 km/h in August 1991.
Transnet has not responded to requests for information on what will be done to clear the blockage and to make alternative arrangements for the vessels due to call on Port Elizabeth. At least one berth will be out of action.
Containers may have to be railed from Port Elizabeth to the neighbouring port of Ngqura, which was wind-bound on Tuesday due to the high winds. Of bigger concern would be the movement of vehicles out of the port, which is the gateway for Volkswagen, Isuzu and FAW.
East London-based Mercedes-Benz also makes use of the port for the export of vehicles and importation of components. Incoming components will have to be routed through Ngqura to keep the wheels of the Eastern Cape motor industry rolling.
