Ship in the Rhine: Diesel overload in Oestrich-Winkel!

Ship in the Rhine: Diesel overload in Oestrich-Winkel!

A tanking adventure on the Rhine: On June 26, 2025, around 1 p.m., an incident occurred in Oestrich-Winkel that impaired shipping on this important water path. A tank motor ship, loaded with a proud 2000 tons of diesel, ran aground about 200 meters below the Mariannaue tail. It was found that the ship was 15 centimeters too deep, which significantly complicated the situation. Despite several attempts to free the ship, this was initially not successful and the water shipping office (WSA) gave a continuation ban.

The affected ships had to be patient while the diesel of the accident was reloaded. By 9:20 p.m., 340 tons of diesel were reloaded to another tank motor ship. Fortunately, the tanker remained undamaged and there was neither material nor personal injury. Both ships continued their journey after the operation. After a blocking of the shipping, which was maintained by the patrol boats of the Water Protection Police Mainz and Rüdesheim, the traffic could be released between 6:53 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.

closures and shipping conditions

In total, seven ships in the mountain trip and five were affected during the closure. All affected ships were able to continue their journey after the shipping conditions were restored. The fairway was restricted to a width of 80 meters, which was due to several incorrect depths. The Rhine remains one of the most used in the world, with around 600 ship movements on the German-Dutch border, 400 in Cologne and 300 in Mainz, to name just a few, as ZKR reports.

The event in Oestrich-Winkel is not the first incident that hindered shipping on the Rhine. Only a few months ago, in April 2025, an accident at St. Goarshausen occurred when a tank ship loaded with 1400 tons of petrol petrol collided with an unpopular tank motor ship. Here, too, shipping traffic was closed at short notice due to the basic running, but without any significant damage or personal injury. Such incidents raise questions, in particular the role of the low water level of the Rhine, which is also a topic of growing interest.

The Central Commission for Rhine -Shipping, responsible for infrastructure issues on the Rhine, is strongly involved in monitoring such events. It notes that the Rhine regularly records interruptions in shipping traffic, an average of around 100 hours a year. These generally affect high or low water levels and various, often unpredictable factors. After all, the Rhine shipping must also adapt to the challenges of climate change, a task that the ZKR keeps an eye on and for which an update of the factual report is being planned.

Shipping on the Rhine remains an exciting topic that affects not only the regional but also the international trade routes. While the ships continue to slide over the water, it shows that where water flows, there are always stories to tell.