One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This archival content was originally written for and published on KPCC.org. Keep in mind that links and images may no longer work — and references may be outdated.
The fallout from a shipping world bankruptcy hits LA
A security guard stands next to containers at the Hanjin Incheon Container Terminal in Seoul.
(
ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images
)
The fallout from an international shipping company's bankruptcy continues and the Port of Long Beach is caught in the middle.
South Korean shipping giant Hanjin filed for bankruptcy last week, leaving cargo ships out at sea. Many ports around the world are not allowing the ships to dock for fear the company won't be able to pay their bills.
As KPCC reported last week, one Hanjin vessel was anchored in the port of Long Beach inside the breakwater, another was anchored just outside the breakwater and a third was waiting 40 miles south of the ports.
Southern California lawmakers gathered Sunday to try to ensure that workers who handle cargo along the supply chain aren't the ones left out in the cold.
Alan Lowenthal, who represents the 47th congressional district, which includes the Port of Long Beach, tells KPCC: "We know there's a great consolidation taking place among the international carriers and that this one bankruptcy may not be the last. We want to make sure that Americans are not gouged. We want to make sure that we who are the biggest customers don't get exploited in this situation."
The immediate goal is to get another company to start operating the Hanjin terminal so ships can come in and retailers don't lose their goods.
Lowenthal says lawmakers also want to open up a discussion with the Federal Maritime Commission to see if they can help.
Sponsored message
Patrick Kelly with the Orange County Teamsters Union believes over a thousand Southern California workers could be affected.
"There's longshoremen that aren't working," he tells KPCC. "There's warehousemen that aren't working. There's truck drivers that aren't working. And there's all kinds of other people that aren't working. And there's also people out on their ships that effectively don't have a viable employer that they're working for."
Many of the goods stranded at sea are intended for the winter 2016 holiday season.
"This is a serious predicament for a lot of companies," Jock O’Connell, international trade adviser at Beacon Economics, told KPCC. "There’s a lot of containers at sea that aren’t being delivered."
Importers and exporters now have to scramble to find other carriers to ship their goods — and those carriers are charging more.
"Pricing for shipping has skyrocketed," Nina Luu, the founder and CEO of shipping management company Shippable, told KPCC.
And that's if they can find space. Many ships are already fully booked with holiday cargo.
Sponsored message
Attorneys say it could be a while before that cargo gets moved.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
