An anchor dislodged from a Matson ship is adding to disruptions of cargo deliveries to Hawaii that so far have been relatively mild amid West Coast port labor troubles.
The Maunawili container ship was damaged when an anchor came loose and slammed into its hull while sailing through a severe storm on the way from China to California recently.
Matson initially expected repairs would be completed in time for the ship to depart for Honolulu last Sunday, but the work is taking longer and Matson is putting a reserve ship into service Friday to help pick up the slack.
"We apologize for the delays and inconveniences caused by this damage to our vessel," the company said in a letter to customers. "We are doing our best to minimize the long-term impact by utilizing our reserve capacity."
Jeff Hull, a spokesman for Honolulu-based Matson Inc., said customers will experience delays ranging from several days to a week.
Labor troubles at 29 West Coast ports have had some impact on Hawaii’s biggest ocean cargo carrier, though it has been relatively light compared with international carriers that bring goods to the state directly from foreign ports.
Dozens of cargo ships are backed up outside ports waiting to be unloaded. The bad situation grew worse after cargo handling was suspended Thursday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. However, the suspension didn’t apply to domestic carriers including Matson.
Hull said Matson has experienced labor-related delays of one or two days compared with two or three weeks for some international cargo carriers.
To compensate for the loss of the Maunawili, which is one of Matson’s biggest and newest ships, the company is breaking out a reserve vessel built in 1973, the Matsonia, to sail from Oakland, Calif., to Honolulu on Friday.
The Matsonia will run only between Hawaii and the mainland, so Matson’s weekly stop in Guam next week was canceled. Another Matson ship will arrive in Guam on March 3.
Cargo bound for Hawaii that would have been carried out of Long Beach, Calif., by the Maunawili was loaded onto the Mokihana that departed Long Beach Saturday and is scheduled to arrive in Honolulu Thursday. Any cargo bumped from the Mokihana will be delivered by the Maunalei, which was scheduled to leave Long Beach Wednesday and arrive in Honolulu Sunday.
Matson said it cannot yet predict when repairs to the Maunawili will be finished.
