The problem not only represents millions in lost goods, but also creates invisible hazards for navigation and spills pollution into the oceans. How many containers are really lost, what risks do they pose, and what is being done to stop this silent tide of steel and plastic?
Despite the enormous volume of containers in circulation—around 250 million movements annually—the loss of containers at sea is relatively rare in percentage terms. In 2022, 661 containers were reported lost globally—just 0.00048% of total traffic. This was the lowest figure recorded since systematic tracking began in 2008, marking a significant improvement compared to previous years. In fact, 2023 ended with a historic low of only 221 containers lost worldwide, a dramatic reduction partly attributed to increased industry precautions.
However, in past years, the figures were higher. Considering the full historical series, the annual average is estimated at around 1,500 containers lost per year, with spikes in certain years due to catastrophic accidents. Over the past decade and a half, more than 20,000 containers have ended up in the ocean, turning the sea into an involuntary graveyard of cargo. Europe is no stranger to the issue: while many losses occur on transpacific routes, European waters have also seen significant incidents that have brought the matter to the attention of regional authorities.
Notable Incidents of Containers Lost at Sea
An aerial photo shows the devastation on the deck of the container ship ONE Apus after a storm in the Pacific in November 2020. Dozens of containers were crushed or left hanging overboard following the tempest.
In this incident, the vessel lost more than 1,800 containers in a single event, making it one of the worst recorded cases of cargo loss at sea. Just two months later, in early 2021, another ship, the Maersk Essen, was hit by heavy seas en route to Los Angeles, dropping around 750 containers into the ocean. These back-to-back events, concentrated in a short time span, nearly doubled the typical annual average of lost containers in just a few weeks, triggering alarms throughout the shipping industry.
Over the years, several disasters have highlighted the vulnerability of maritime transport to extreme conditions. In 2013, the vessel MOL Comfort split in two during a storm in the Indian Ocean, sending 4,293 containers to the seabed. Likewise, the wreck of the MV Rena off the coast of New Zealand in 2011 resulted in the loss of nearly 900 containers. Another tragic case was the sinking of the SS El Faro during a hurricane in 2015: in addition to the 33 lives lost, the disaster saw 517 fully loaded containers disappear. Each of these extreme incidents made a significant contribution to global loss statistics and exposed critical weaknesses in cargo safety practices.
Europe has had its own notable incidents. In January 2019, the MSC Zoe, one of the largest container ships in the world, faced a severe storm in the North Sea and lost 270 containers in shallow waters between the Netherlands and Germany. The contents of many of those containers – ranging from toys to chemicals – ended up scattered across the beaches of the Wadden Sea, prompting an expensive environmental cleanup operation. More recently, in December 2023, the Liberian-flagged Toconao lost six containers off the coast of the Iberian Peninsula. One of them carried 25 tons of plastic pellets (industrial granules), which shortly thereafter appeared as a “white tide” of tiny beads on the beaches of Galicia. This latest incident highlighted that even relatively small losses can have a significant environmental and media impact, sparking new discussions about cargo safety in Europe.
Risks for Maritime Navigation
Although the losses are minimal compared to the millions of containers transported, each lost container represents a latent danger to navigation. Many of these containers do not sink immediately; they may remain adrift, partially submerged, for days or weeks before finally sinking. While floating, they become almost invisible obstacles, especially at night or in rough seas, capable of causing unexpected collisions. A 12-meter metal container, even semi-submerged, can seriously damage the hull or propeller of a ship that strikes it at high speed. For smaller vessels, such as fishing boats or recreational sailboats, colliding with one of these “steel icebergs” can be potentially catastrophic.
Evidence of this risk has been increasing. The sports organization World Sailing (the international sailing federation) has documented at least eight cases in which crews of sailing yachts had to abandon their vessels after colliding with what are believed to have been floating containers. In 2016, for example, French navigator Thomas Ruyant saw the hull of his round-the-world racing yacht open up after a hard impact in the middle of the ocean, likely against a drifting container. “It sends shivers down my spine just thinking about it,” Ruyant said at the time, though he was lucky to be rescued. These accidents, although infrequent, highlight that a single lost container can jeopardize safety at sea.
In addition to the collision risk, fallen containers can release structural parts (pieces of metal, wooden pallets, packaging) that also float and pose smaller but widespread risks, such as unidentified floating objects. For this reason, coast guard services in various countries issue navigation warnings when a container loss is reported in a particular area, alerting ships to increase vigilance. However, detecting a drifting container in the vast ocean is like searching for a needle in a haystack, and in many cases, these containers end up sinking without ever being located.
Environmental Impact on the Oceans
When a container is lost, it not only concerns shipowners and sailors but also scientists and environmentalists. Each misplaced container is a potential pollution bomb for the marine environment. Its varied contents—food, textiles, plastics, chemicals, etc.—can slowly be released into the sea, either by the container breaking upon impact or over time as the structure corrodes underwater. Thousands of products end up scattered in the ocean: many float until they reach distant shores, while others sink and are deposited on the seabed. There have been documented cases of toys, shoes, and even televisions suddenly appearing on remote beaches, carried by currents after containers were lost.
The image shows small plastic pellets (resin beads) on the sand, similar to those that washed up on the Galician coast after a container was lost in 2023. These tiny pellets, raw material for making plastics, illustrate the problem of microplastic pollution resulting from lost containers. A single container can hold millions of these beads: once dispersed in the sea, they are nearly impossible to clean up entirely. Many marine animals mistake them for food and ingest them, with fatal consequences. After the massive pellet spill in Sri Lanka in 2021 (due to the fire and sinking of another container ship), over 400 dead sea turtles were found, along with dozens of dolphins and whales, their stomachs clogged with plastic. Experts described that scene as an “ecological war zone.”
Even when the contents of a lost container are not formally classified as hazardous cargo, they can cause severe environmental damage. Items that seem harmless on land—such as tons of plastic toys, rice sacks, foam mattresses—become marine debris when they drift away. As they break down from the action of waves and the sun, many of these materials generate microplastics and waste that enter the marine food chain. In other cases, containers carry toxic or corrosive substances (paints, batteries, pesticides) that, once released into the sea, poison the water and sediments. Losses can also damage sensitive habitats: imagine a container full of machinery falling onto a coral reef, or a cargo of grains rotting in a closed ecosystem and altering the chemistry of the water. Marine biologists note that even the metal container itself, when it sinks intact, alters the micro-ecosystem of the seabed where it rests, affecting the species living there. In short, every lost container carries a potentially serious ecological footprint, sometimes localized (a polluted beach) and other times global (more plastic added to the oceanic garbage gyre).
Prevention and Mitigation Measures: Industry and Authorities in Action
Concerned by these threats, shipping companies and international organizations have implemented various measures to prevent container losses and mitigate their effects. In recent years, the shipping industry has invested in technological and operational improvements to enhance cargo safety. For example, research is underway to increase the structural resilience of containers and the securing equipment (cables, tensioners, locks) that hold them to the deck. Improvements are also being made in stowage procedures: ensuring that heavier containers are placed at the bottom and centered, and lighter ones are placed on top, properly balancing the ship. The correct declaration of each container’s weight (mandatory since 2016) plays a crucial role in preventing unstable stacking. Additionally, onboard monitoring systems are being developed: some ships are already equipped with sensors that alert of abnormal cargo movements or deformations in container stacks, providing an opportunity to act before a collapse occurs.
In parallel, shipping companies and captains apply better navigation practices and route planning to avoid adverse weather. Advanced weather forecasting allows routes to be plotted that avoid the worst storms, even if this means detours and additional travel days. After the high-profile accidents of 2020-21 in the Pacific, many companies reinforced fleet guidelines to reduce speed or change course in the face of extreme swells, rather than maintaining course and speed at all costs. In Europe, after the MSC Zoe incident, maritime authorities urged mega container ships to avoid certain shallow water routes in the North Sea during severe storms. In fact, MSC announced it would stop using the route near the Frisian Islands during bad weather, opting for safer but longer paths. These kinds of operational adjustments aim to minimize the risk of cargo being compromised by adverse oceanic conditions.
Starting in 2026, captains will be required to immediately report container losses to the authorities of the nearby coastal countries, as well as the flag state of the vessel.
On the regulatory front, there are also significant updates. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) approved amendments in 2023 to strengthen transparency and response to lost containers. Starting in 2026, captains will be required to immediately report the loss of containers to the authorities of the nearby coastal countries, as well as the flag state of the vessel. This aims to ensure that navigation alerts are issued and efforts are coordinated to locate or recover the lost cargo. (Until now, in international waters, it was only mandatory to report if the lost container carried goods classified as hazardous; otherwise, reporting was at the discretion of the shipowner. The European Union, for its part, already requires that member states be notified when a container falls in their jurisdictional waters. However, the lack of strict enforcement mechanisms raises concerns that some smaller losses may still go unreported, so the IMO and national authorities will need to monitor compliance with these regulations.)
Finally, both shipping companies and insurers are exploring contingency and recovery plans. When containers fall near the coast, operations are organized to recover them or at least remove the debris. For example, MSC funded an extensive search and cleaning operation after the MSC Zoe accident, committing to remove all possible containers and waste from the seabed. In the case of the Toconao vessel, Spanish and Portuguese authorities coordinated the collection of plastic pellets on beaches and at sea, with volunteer support, to mitigate the damage. Additionally, measures such as the use of flotation devices or tracking systems on certain containers (to aid in their location if they fall) and the development of construction standards that allow more controlled sinkings (for example, containers that collapse in a way that keeps their contents contained) are being discussed.
In conclusion, while the loss of containers represents a tiny fraction of global maritime trade, its disproportionate effects on safety and the environment have made it a priority issue. The combination of technology, best practices, and more stringent regulations appears to be yielding results, as reflected by the drastic reduction in the number of containers lost in 2022 and 2023. However, both the shipping industry and authorities agree that there is no room for complacency: every container that falls into the ocean is too many, and continuing to work toward making these incidents rarer is an ongoing task. The oceans, and all who depend on them, demand it.
