U.S. ports welcome giant ship
The container ship COSCO Development is guided under the Talmadge Bridge on Thursday in Savannah, Ga, as the vessel sails up the Savannah River to the Port of Savannah. The ship is the largest vessel ever to call on the U.S. East Coast. — AP
In this photo provided by the Georgia Ports Authority, the container ship COSCO Development sails up river past the historic district of Savannah, Ga., to the Port of Savannah, on Thursday, May 11, 2017. At 1,201 feet long and 158 feet wide, the ship is the largest vessel ever to call on the U.S. East Coast. (AP Photo/Georgia Ports Authority, Stephen Morton)
A crowd of well-wishers along River Street welcome the container ship COSCO Development, Thursday morning, May 11, 2017, in Savannah, Ga, as the vessel sails up the Savannah River to the Port of Savannah. The ship is the largest vessel ever to call on the U.S. East Coast. (Steve Bisson/Savannah Morning News via AP)
SAVANNAH, Ga. — The largest cargo ship ever to visit ports on the U.S. East Coast is so long the Statue of Liberty and Washington Monument could fit end-to-end along its deck and still leave room for Big Ben. The COSCO Development arrived Thursday at the Port of Savannah after cruising past dozens of onlookers who cheered and took photos of the mammoth vessel from Savannah’s downtown riverfront. Its first East Coast voyage marks a new era for U.S. ports that, despite years spent anticipating the supersized ships, will struggle to accommodate them. At 1,200 feet bow-to-stern, the Chinese vessel is longer than the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford. It can carry 13,000 cargo containers measuring 20 feet long apiece. — AP
