Authorities in South Korea have reported that a cargo vessel accidentally struck a pier at the Port of Gamcheon in the city of Busan on Saturday, November 29.
According to the Korea Coast Guard, the 1,990-tonne vessel, which has been identified only as sailing under the flag of Sao Tome and Principe, abruptly and unexpectedly moved forward as it was docking at the port's pier three at around 11:18 local time on Saturday.
The strike resulted in damage to the ship's bow and part of the port's seawall, though there were no injuries among the crew and no signs of pollution were detected.
Coast guard inspectors found a crack between 30 and 50 centimetres long just left of the bow. No details have been provided on whether this would affect the vessel's seaworthiness.
The ship was crewed by 10 Indonesian nationals and was navigating under the guidance of a pilot when the incident occurred.
Testing later determined that the ship's captain had not been under the influence of alcohol.
Some of the crew told coast guard officials that the ship had unintentionally surged forward instead of reversing during the manoeuvre.