MS Maud (16,151 GT, 668 passengers and crew) in Bremerhaven next to MS World Dream (150,695 GT, 3,690 passengers and crew) Photo: Facebook

We recently posted about the Hurtigruten cruise ship MS Maud that was disabled during the North Sea storm Pia on Thursday. The Maud arrived in Bremerhaven yesterday, under tow, after suffering damage by a rogue wave to the bridge deck resulting in the loss of navigational systems and a temporary loss of power. There are no reports of serious injuries to her passengers and crew.

Maud was not the only ship to be impacted by storm Pia. The 18,270 TEU ultra-large-container ship Mayview Maersk, which sailed from Bremerhaven around the time that the Maud was arriving, lost at least 46 containers off the North Jutland coast of Denmark in storm Pia. No injuries were reported among the crew. 

Reports suggest that at least four containers have washed ashore so far. Photos in the Danish media show refrigerators, and medical items including needles, shoes, and other consumer goods on the beaches. The material appears to be scattered across nearly 10 miles of beaches. The containers appear to be 40-foot boxes. Thousands of boots are also reported to have washed up on beaches in northern Denmark.

Fortunately, there were no fatalities or serious injuries on the Maud or the Mayview Maersk. On shore, however, powerful wind gusts knocked out power to thousands in the UK and disrupted air and rail transportation on either side of the channel. Tragically, at least two people died in the storm. In the Belgian city of Oudenaarde, a woman was killed and two people were injured by a 20-metre Christmas tree that fell over, collapsing next to a Christmas market. In the Netherlands, a woman died of her injuries after she was also hit by a falling tree.

MS Maude passing a large Maersk container ship in Bremerhaven