Gantry Crane Collapse Injures 10 at Jebel Ali

On Monday, DP World confirmed the collapse of an STS gantry crane at Jebel Ali Port Terminal 1. During berthing, a container ship operated by CMA CGM struck the harbor wall and the leg of the crane, leading to the loss of the crane's structural integrity. 

DP World said that its safety teams responded immediately and evacuated the area, and first responders used drones to survey the scene and search for survivors. Ten people were injured in the incident, and nine were treated on site; one man sustained a broken arm and leg, and he was transferred to the hospital. DP World confirmed that there were no fatalities.

The port operator has begun an investigation, and it will remove the wreckage once it has gathered all needed information from the site of the collapse. A second crane was struck and damaged, but it did not fall over, and it is out of service pending the outcome of a structural assessment. 

Media sources identified the vessel involved as the 11,000 TEU CMA CGM Centaurus. As of Tuesday, the Centaurus was under way in the Persian Gulf, bound for Dammam.  

Jebel Ali Terminal 1 has three quays with nearly 70 cranes, with a combined annual capacity of nine million TEU. With Terminals 2, 3 and a new Terminal 4 – now under construction – the port will soon have a total capacity of 22 million TEU.