Bananas on the Beach After a Cargo Spill Creates Coastal Chaos
So, imagine taking a stroll along the Sussex coastline and suddenly spotting bunches of bananas scattered along the sand, with giant steel shipping containers bobbing in the waves or washed up near people’s homes. That’s exactly what people around Selsey woke up to, after a rather unusual maritime mishap unfolded offshore.
The whole situation started when sixteen cargo containers accidentally fell overboard from a vessel called the Baltic Klipper on Saturday evening, just off the Isle of Wight near the Nab Tower lighthouse. Most of these containers were packed with fruit — mainly bananas, but also avocados and plantains — while a few of them were completely empty. The ship is known for transporting soft fruits and regularly sails routes from the Caribbean or West Africa, so its colourful cargo wasn’t unexpected… just the location definitely was.
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By Sunday, five of those containers had already washed ashore around Selsey in West Sussex. A coastguard helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft were sent out to track the remaining ones still floating at sea. Because some containers might pose navigational hazards, warnings had to be broadcast to ships across the Solent. In fact, the spill even disrupted local shipping schedules — the P&O Cruises ship Iona had its departure from Southampton delayed simply because the drifting containers created an obstruction.
On land, emergency teams moved quickly. HM Coastguard, West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, and Sussex Police placed cordons around the containers and urged the public to stay away. It may look like a treasure trove of free fruit, but officials made it clear that anything washed up from the containers counts as wreck material and legally must be reported. People who don’t report items within 28 days could actually face legal action — though authorities did say this won’t apply to perishable goods. Still, they’re asking everyone to follow council instructions to avoid both safety risks and legal complications.
Meanwhile, bananas with Tesco labels have been popping up on the shore, but the supermarket reassured customers that supplies are unaffected and stores remain fully stocked. Behind the scenes, West Sussex County Council has already called in specialist response teams to begin the clear-up.
According to one maritime worker from Portsmouth, the real concern isn’t the containers that sink — those settle out of the way — but the ones that remain afloat. They can drift unpredictably and become hazards for ships of all sizes.
So right now, the scene in Selsey looks a bit surreal: a quiet seaside town temporarily transformed into a tropical-fruit-strewn coastline, thanks to a storm, a cargo spill, and several runaway containers. The clean-up continues, the searches are ongoing, and locals are being reminded — politely but firmly — to leave the bananas alone.
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