By Laura Curtis
Nov 22, 2025 (Bloomberg) – Operations at the busiest port in the US have started up again after a container ship that caught fire on Friday evening was moved further from shore, according to the Port of Los Angeles.
The port stated, “The fire on board has been largely contained. Fire crews and ship crew members are still working to put out the fire.”
Tracking data shows that the ship, named One Henry Hudson, has been towed from the port and is now anchored outside the breakwater.
Earlier, when the ship was docked, a safety zone was set up around it, causing operations to temporarily stop at four of the seven container terminals in the port. Thankfully, no injuries were reported, although fire officials advised local residents to stay indoors and keep their windows shut due to smoke. This alert was lifted on Saturday morning.
The Los Angeles Fire Department had previously classified the situation as a “major emergency,” noting that the ship was carrying hazardous materials.
LAFD Captain Adam VanGerpen reported that the number of containers believed to be on fire increased to about 100 from an initial estimate of 40, and as of 7:15 a.m., the fire on the ship was still “very active,” he mentioned during an interview with KTLA.
More than 100 firefighters have responded to the fire, as stated by LA Mayor Karen Bass.
Sal Mercogliano, a maritime historian from Campbell University in North Carolina, shared aerial footage of the incident and provided live commentary on YouTube. Around 6 a.m. local time, he observed that firefighters were managing to contain the fire while using water cannons to cool the ship’s hull.
According to information from Bloomberg, the Panama-flagged One Henry Hudson arrived at the port on Wednesday after stops in Tokyo, Nagoya, Kobe, and Singapore. The vessel can carry about 8,200 containers that are 20 feet in length.
Container traffic at the Port of LA and the nearby Port of Long Beach has been inconsistent this year due to President Donald Trump's threats of tariffs and a slowdown in the fourth quarter, despite a steady flow of goods with minimal congestion and delays at facilities handling roughly a third of all US seaborne imports.
Traffic officials in San Pedro Bay noted that it has been three years since a backlog of ships waiting to dock at LA-Long Beach peaked at 109 vessels in January 2022, which was caused by disruptions from the pandemic.