Maersk diverts ships after Turkish port closes due to earthquake

The Turkish port of Iskenderun suffered damage in an earthquake in the southeast of the country last Monday. Maersk therefore decided to divert its ships to alternative ports. Images from Iskenderun show that containers fell over and caught fire due to the force of the quake. As a result, the port remains closed, according to Turkish authorities. However, other ports in the country remain open. Maersk informed customers in a statement that their ships would be diverted to other container terminals or transshipment ports, such as Bersin and Egypt’s Port Said. It is not yet clear when the port of Iskenderun will be operational again, Maersk said. Turkey was surprised by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake early on Monday last week. The epicentre was near the city of Gaziantep and the port city of Iskenderun is located southwest of it on the Mediterranean Sea.