To anchor discussion, prior to the rise of intermodal shipping containers in the '60s & '70s, cargo was shipped as breakbulk cargo. Losses from theft and damage were considerably reduced by switching from breakbulk cargo to shipping containers. Not the same as losing stuff over the side, but still a regular and somewhat predictable expense.<p>One anecdote I remember from Levinson's book is about a scottish whisky distiller exporting to the US being very excited about being able to ship whisky in a giant stainless steel vessel inside a container instead of shipping individual bottles inside wooden crates (imagine the theft during loading/unloading...).<p>That said, shipping containers were not adopted because they reduced theft and damage (consequently the cost of insuring cargo), they were adopted because they offered much lower costs to shippers (after enough investment in ships and ports and cranes and trucks and changes to transport regulation to provide the infrastructure to move containers around efficiently without double-handling them or unloading and repacking them for technical/labour/regulatory reasons).<p>Marc Levinson's book _The Box_ about the history of the shipping container is worth a read -- <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691170817/the-box" rel="nofollow">https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691170817/th...</a>
> More than 3,000 boxes dropped into the sea last year, and more than 1,000 have fallen overboard so far in 2021.<p>Umm... we have end of April (the article is dated April 29th) or 1/3rd of the year. The last time I checked a third of 3000 is around 1000.<p>Anyway, nowhere in the article I see any numbers to support that there is a "sudden rise in accidents". Even the graphs themselves seem to show entirely different picture -- that this might just be a fluke.
Is there a list of what exactly was lost? Does anyone actively seek out and salvage this sunken treasure? I hate to think of another Garfield Phone thing in the future with something more dangerous.<p><a href="https://time.com/5561165/garfield-phones-france/" rel="nofollow">https://time.com/5561165/garfield-phones-france/</a>
<i>... to captains not deviating from a storm to save on fuel and time as they face pressure from charterers ...</i><p>Rather than shifting this cost to the shippers, they are essentially shifting it to the insurers and then paying more in premiums as a result.<p>Slow Steaming is going to <i>cause</i> some of this because ships will be en route longer and therefore more at risk of weather delay. Maybe they should apply the principle of General Average and simply charge for weather delays, shift this cost to the shippers.
Intermodal shipping containers are arguable the most significant technology of the 20th century. They did more to improve worldwide standard of living, than any other advancement. Including medical.
There are very big differences in captain papers around the world.<p>It's a very know fact that e.g Mærsk has changed their top tier crew from being Danish to chineese, indian, phillipine etc.<p>I am only implying that education might be part of it.
Some background on problems of containers to other ships and yachts:<p><a href="https://www.yachtingworld.com/news/could-a-floating-shipping-container-sink-your-yacht-is-the-danger-to-sailors-real-or-imagined-107508" rel="nofollow">https://www.yachtingworld.com/news/could-a-floating-shipping...</a>
> More than 3,000 boxes dropped into the sea last year, and more than 1,000 have fallen overboard so far in 2021.<p>A fascinating record we leave the next explorers.
At 200 million shipping container trips per year, whether losses are 1000, 4000 or 10,000 seems pretty insignificant. Even 200,000 would be around 1-in-1000 or a tenth of a percent chance of your laptop being lost overboard.
For interest, here are the UK Maritime Accident Investigation Branch reports into two incidents of loss of containers overboard in the Pacific from ships that happened to be UK-flagged at the time:<p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/maib-reports/loss-of-cargo-containers-overboard-from-container-ship-ever-smart" rel="nofollow">https://www.gov.uk/maib-reports/loss-of-cargo-containers-ove...</a><p>The Ever Smart (yes, owned by Evergreen's UK subsidiary)- 44 containers lost.<p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/maib-reports/loss-of-cargo-containers-overboard-from-container-ship-cma-cgm-g-washington" rel="nofollow">https://www.gov.uk/maib-reports/loss-of-cargo-containers-ove...</a><p>The CMA CGM G. Washington- 137 containers lost.
This has always worried me when I’ve moved across the ocean (three times). Books, photos, personal items heading over the side of a ship. I know the odds are low but it’s different from a container ipod identical, brand new Phones.
I am wondering, why it's talking about the absolute number of 3000 containers, but not mentioning if or how the shipping logistics evolved in that time.
It could as well be, that shipping simply increased over years, could it not?<p>edit: According to <a href="https://stats.unctad.org/handbook/MaritimeTransport/Indicators.html" rel="nofollow">https://stats.unctad.org/handbook/MaritimeTransport/Indicato...</a> container shipments increased steadily over years.
To get numbers to publish, just ask the right people and make an educated guess?<p><a href="https://www.ship-technology.com/features/featurecargo-overboard-4517226" rel="nofollow">https://www.ship-technology.com/features/featurecargo-overbo...</a>
Sounds like a good use for AirTags (or EPIRB or AIS or tons of other cheap-as-microchips solutions that could save few sailors' lives).<p>But given we can't even put those on half a billion dollar airplanes - I'm not holding my breath.