THAI authorities have salvaged 51 containers after a collision between a feeder vessel and a general cargo ship in Thailand's Chao Phraya River last week, reports Container News.

The collision occurred in the morning of November 2 between the 2009-built 160TEU NP Pathumthani, owned by Siam Cement Group's shipping unit SCG Logistics, which was sailing from Laem Chabang port to Khlong Toei Terminal in Bangkok port, and the 1995-built 1,300 dwt O P K 3, owned by OPK Global Logistics, travelling in the opposite direction, carrying containers from Bangkok to Laem Chabang.
Reports say that as the ships passed each other they collided causing a two metres-deep hole in the hull of OPK 3. The captain of the vessel promptly steered the ship to the shore in Phra Samut Chedi district while other crew members tried to pump out the water that was flowing into the stricken ship.
As the OKP 3 became partially submerged officials had to salvage the 51 containers on board. The NP Pathumthani suffered minimal damage and none of the crew members on the two ships were injured.
Container News spoke to employees of both SCG Logistics and OPK and was informed that arrangements are being made to repair the ships. SCG Logistics provides multimodal transportation services for raw materials and finished goods, while OPK is involved in domestic container transshipments around Chao Phraya River and the Gulf of Thailand.