Recently, as super typhoon Yagi threatened to make landfall in Hainan, Haikou Maritime Court rose to the challenge and efficiently managed the dragging anchors of two arrested ships amid strong winds. The ships were later successfully auctioned off at a premium, marking them the first vessels to be auctioned after the onslaught of typhoon Yagi.

 

 

Contingency plans in place, and all staff on standby

Following the province’s official warning of typhoon Yagi, Haikou Maritime Court promptly entered a state of alert on 4 September. It had contingency plans ready and set up teams for disaster relief, logistics support, and emergency response for arrested vessels in distress. It systematically assessed the status of all vessels under arrest, identifying all potential hazards and assigning clear responsibilities to the staff. To safeguard both lives and property, it also ensured all arrested vessels were moored in safe ports under the supervision of maritime safety authorities.

 

Strategic coordination in emergency response

At around 9 am on 6 September, the Basuo Tribunal of Haikou Maritime Court received an urgent notification from Yangpu Maritime Safety Administration, reporting that two 48-meter steel fishing ships arrested by the court and moored in the wind-sheltered berths of Baimajing Fishing Port had started to drag anchor due to strong winds. There was a risk that the ships could further drift toward Yangpu Bridge and Yangpu Port, potentially causing collisions that might severely damage the bridge, the port, and other vessels, thereby endangering public safety and jeopardizing future auction enforcement on the arrested ships.

 

Anxious about the situation, the case handler immediately telephoned the court’s Leading Party Members’ Group and the Hainan High People’s Court to report the incident. As instructed by the higher court, the court’s Leading Party Members’ Group promptly activated the typhoon emergency response mechanism. Deputy President Luo Chun was appointed to lead the response, assisted by officials from the Basuo Tribunal. They were tasked with treating the situation with utmost priority and maintaining a calm approach. The team was to further assess the situation and swiftly convene all relevant parties and competent safety authorities to coordinate an emergency response. The immediate goal was to tow back or secure the ships as quickly as possible to prevent any secondary accidents, ensuring the safety of both people and the arrested ships.

 

Concerted efforts in relief operations

Observing the directives from the Leading Party Members’ Group, Deputy President Luo Chun led the coordination of emergency measures. Despite severe weather and communication challenges, officials from the Basuo Tribunal collaborated with various stakeholders, including the maritime safety administration, the coast guard, agricultural and rural authorities, enforcement applicants, enforcement subjects, the ships’ caretakers, and other interested parties. Together, they reviewed multiple contingency plans, assessed the current status and geographical positions of the ships, predicted the potential maximum impact of the typhoon, and opted to re-anchor and secure the ships at their current locations.

 

 

At around 12 pm on the 6 September, the two ships were successfully re-anchored close to a wharf some 800 meters off Yangpu Bridge. At around 1 pm, two high-standard marine cables were urgently delivered to the scene, allowing the two ships to be initially moored and secured to prevent further escalation of the danger. At around 2 pm, leveraging favorable winds, tides, and currents, the joint relief team employed heavy engineering machinery to assist the two ships in securely berthing at the wharf, followed by additional measures to further secure them and install bumpers. At around 6 pm, following intense and orderly cooperation among various parties, the berthing and securing operations for the two ships were completed. Personnel from all involved groups began to evacuate in an organized manner. By then, less than two hours remained before the eyewall of Typhoon Yagi was expected to impact Baimajing Fishing Port. Thanks to the emergency rescue and securing operations, the two ships remained safe and encountered no further danger, despite the port area experiencing consistent gusts reaching and exceeding force 12 that night.

 

 

Potential danger properly resolved, and first transactions yielded successful auctions

After the typhoon passed, the parties involved in the case inspected the condition of the two fishing ships and concurred that the relief efforts coordinated by Haikou Maritime Court had effectively protected the ships, the bridge, and other port facilities. This coordination helped prevent further losses and ensured the quality and efficiency of property disposal and the enforcement of the case.

While actively managing the crisis, Haikou Maritime Court wasted no time in expediting the enforcement proceedings of the case. On the morning of 8 September, after verifying their condition, the court listed both ships for auction on Taobao judicial auction platform, as originally planned. They sold for CNY 7.06 million and CNY 6.5 million respectively, achieving a total premium of some CNY 500,000. The typhoon did not affect the efficiency of the case handling in the slightest.

 

                                

                     Successful auctions

 

Haikou Maritime Court’s efficient management of the dangerous situation involving the arrested ships’ dragging anchors during Typhoon Yagi, coupled with the successful auction of these ships, exemplified the court’s rigorous adherence to the directives of the Party Committee, government, and the High People’s Court of the province. By actively embracing the judicial philosophy of “walking in litigants’ shoes before judging them”, the court has achieved a harmonious balance of political, legal, and social outcomes in its case handling and conclusions. The parties involved greatly appreciated the court’s proactive response to the disaster and efforts to ensure the safety of the arrested ships. They expressed their commitment to actively cooperate with the court in the subsequent property disposal, aiming to ensure that the case’s resolution would definitively settle the dispute.