Cargo Ship Hits Railway Bridge at Neuss Port, Germany

A container vessel collided with a railway bridge at the port of Neuss, near Düsseldorf, on Tuesday morning, March 24.

The incident occurred at around 10:00 a.m. at Rhine kilometer 740. While no injuries were reported, several containers fell into the water, briefly disrupting port operations.

The ship, which had arrived from the Netherlands, struck the bridge while entering the harbor and became lodged beneath it. Two containers initially fell into the water at the moment of impact. When the lift bridge was later raised to release the vessel, two additional containers dropped into the harbor as the cargo shifted.

Emergency services, including police, firefighters, and water rescue teams, responded to the scene. Authorities deployed multiple police boats and port vessels to secure the containers and prevent them from drifting into the Rhine River.

A police helicopter was also used to assess whether any pollution had occurred. Officials confirmed that no contamination was detected.

A crane vessel was brought in to retrieve the containers from the harbor basin. Once recovery operations were completed, access to the port of Neuss was reopened. However, the railway bridge, which is used exclusively for port rail traffic, has been closed while inspections are carried out to assess potential damage.

Authorities have not yet determined why the vessel entered the harbor, as it had already passed the container terminal before the incident. The water police have launched an investigation to establish the cause.