A mechanical failure has led to a significant cargo loss for Trailer Bridge, with over 180 containers affected.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Trailer Bridge barge that was looted near the Bahamas has returned to Jacksonville, concluding a tumultuous nine-day saga. During this time, nearly all of the containers onboard were either broken into, emptied, or lost at sea.
This incident began on November 11 when the tugboat Southern Dawn encountered mechanical issues amidst severe weather while heading to Puerto Rico.
The tow wire snapped, causing the barge Brooklyn Bridge to drift before it eventually became grounded on a reef about three miles off the coast of the Bahamas.
Stranded without power, the barge quickly attracted the attention of nearby residents.
With no power, the stranded barge quickly caught the attention of locals.
By the evening of November 13, Trailer Bridge alerted the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy that approximately 50 looters were actively raiding the barge. Bahamian police responded but declined to intervene, citing safety concerns.
Maritime attorney Rod Sullivan said what happened next was unlike anything typically seen in the Puerto Rico shipping trade.
“Breaking into 181 containers,” Sullivan said, “that’s a big job.”
According to Sullivan, the looters had unrestricted access, with authorities not intervening.
Trailer Bridge confirmed in a statement that of the 192 containers aboard, only 11 remained sealed. The rest were pried open—many with bolt cutters—and stripped of valuables. Items too large to carry off were tossed into the ocean.
“We’re talking about each container having somewhere between $50,000 and $200,000 worth of cargo,” Sullivan clarified. “Anything they couldn’t take back to the Bahamas was dumped into the ocean.”
Cleanup crews in the Bahamas have since recovered appliances, packaging, and debris scattered across the reef.
Sullivan notes that while maritime theft is common in some parts of the world, such as the Singapore Straits, it is highly unusual for the Jacksonville-to-Puerto Rico route.
“If this barge hadn’t broken away and ended up on the reef, it probably would not have been looted,” Sullivan said.
The consequences are now rippling outward—from insurers working through what could be a multi-million-dollar claim, to families in Puerto Rico expecting shipments that never arrived.
“The people in Puerto Rico will probably suffer some shortages over the next few weeks as they try to make up for the cargo that was stolen,” Sullivan said.
Many of the containers held personal belongings from people relocating to the island. Others held food, appliances, and commercial freight.
The Brooklyn Bridge barge arrived back at JAXPORT on November 21, where crews finished unloading and began a container-by-container inventory with insurance carriers. Trailer Bridge says the process could take weeks as they work to identify what was taken and return salvageable items to customers.
The company is also funding the reef cleanup in the Bahamas, which it expects to complete within the week.
Trailer Bridge thanked U.S. officials for supporting the barge’s return and said its priority remains the safety of personnel and the accurate accounting of customer cargo.
