A small 50-metre China-flagged coastal feeder was blown ashore at Butterfly Beach in Tuen Mun in the west of Hong Kong after it suffered engine problems, local reports said.

There was no damage to the vessel or the shore apart from it running through and damaging the shark net placed off the public beach. The Marine Department is investigating the cause of the accident. "We are still checking what damage has been caused by the vessel and investigating the cause of the incident," a spokeswoman said.

All seven crew on the Sui Hai Yun 382 were uninjured in the incident, as the vessel was enroute to a Tuen Mun pier to unload goods.

Marine police launches were sent to the scene after a report was received that the 760-tonne vessel had run aground at the beach off Lung Mun Road, reports said. By late Wednesday night, the ship's operators had removed the vessel.

The vessel is the the second containership to run aground in Hong Kong's busy shipping lanes this month and the fourth this year.