A crew member of the 'Yuka D' from the Philippines died after falling from the ship's crane while cleaning it at the Paradip Port on May 22, 2024. The deceased has been identified as Azarcon Earl Wilhelm Curao (26). The sailor was brought ashore by a boat from the anchorage zone and taken to Paradip Port Hospital. Despite prompt medical attention, he died upon arrival at the facility.The ship was anchored at Paradip Port to load a cargo of coal. The Marine Police Station in the Nehru Bangla province launched an investigation. The Philippine embassy has been contacted, and arrangements were being made to repatriate Curao’s body.
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MV KARAR
A police officer has linked the Castañas clan, from Andalusia, with those accused of the stash of 3,800 kilos of cocaine aboard the 'Karar' in 2020, and companies from Galicia and northern Portugal that manufacture semi-rigid boats like those used by drug traffickers. Police surveillance of the members of the Galician criminal group allegedly led by Juan Carlos Santórum, the main defendant in the 'Karar' plot, began in June 2019 - the ship was boarded in April 2020 - and confirmed trips from Andalusia by members from the Castañas, to Galicia and, from there, to Portugal. During these trips, they visited, according to investigators, ships in which vessels like those used by drug traffickers were built to receive drugs. The agent has mainly referred to the Galician Fidel F., one of the accused, who is dedicated to the manufacture of vessels in Galicia. In the trial being held at the Vigo headquarters of the Provincial Court of Pontevedra, where 28 people are accused, the second witness who testified this week has stated that he never saw a work routine for Santorum, his brother and other defendants. In his story, the police officer has also referred to other investigated persons who are not prosecuted, such as Sergio R.T., whom he has linked, through an intercepted telephone call to Fidel F., with a transaction to purchase 300 HP motors for boats. . In March 2020, the police detected that the businessman in the nautical sector was requesting naval gray paint from a company, the kind used to go unnoticed by the boats that transport drugs to shore. On March 27, all the alarms went off, according to the researcher, following the so-called loss of a Portuguese telephone to Fidel F., which he returned and in which there was no communication. "We don't give it importance, but there is a coincidence with the Central Narcotics Brigade and they tell us that a report from the DEA - United States Agency - related that telephone number to a ship that was bringing a large amount of cocaine. We interpret it as a notice for Fidel F. to contact them by another means because they do not usually use conventional lines," the police officer stated. A subsequent communication from the DEA told the agents that "a guarantee person" was traveling on the ship, a certain José, of Galician origin, and that the ship had departed from Panama. Thus, after filtering the data of travelers who had flown from Spain to the Central American country, they found another of the defendants, José B.G. They tracked the route of the 'Karar', and that coincided with a new call from the Portuguese telephone, in this case to a number located in Madrid, which is attributed to it in the letter of accusation to the Colombian René Robledo, to tell him that "the transport had passed all the points" and would arrive the following week. From there, the organization accelerated preparations to receive the shipment. After an hour and a half of testimony, the defenses protested because the witness, behind a screen, was consulting some notes - 9 pages with 63 days outlined - and the hearing was suspended for a few minutes so that the parties had access to those documents. Back in the room, the defenses have asked that the witness's statement be annulled for procedural fraud and violation of the law by appearing with a script, but the magistrate has rejected it.
Rio de Janeiro
The Mexican tank m/v ’Irmã Dulce’, 72900 dwt (IMO: 9548691), which was under construction at Estalairo Maua in Rio de Janeiro, suffered water ingress in the engine room and aft peak in the night of May 4, 2020. The stern came to rest on bthe bottom at a water depth of four to five meters. The accident was apparently caused by a leaking valve. In the afternoon of May 5 divers managed to stabilize the ship. It was the second of a series of four for Transpetro and was launched in 2014. The order for all three ships still under construction was later canceled. The Panamax had currently been 95% completed. Report with photo: https://splash247.com/near-complete-brazilian-tanker-newbuild-sinks-at-pier/ .
Port Elizabeth
On May 2, 2020, at 08.50 a.m. the NSRI Port Elizabeth duty crew and EC Government Health EMS were activated by the Transnet National Ports Authority to respond to rendezvous with a bulk carrier approaching Port Elizabeth from Cape Town to attend to a 52 year old Iraqi crew member onboard the ship suffering an emergency medical condition, not Covid-19 related. The sea rescue craft 'Spirit of Toft' was launched accompanied by an EMS rescue paramedic and rendezvoused with the ship seven miles East of Cape Recife. The EMS rescue paramedic and an NSRI rescue swimmer were transferred onto the ship and the patient was found to be in a critical condition. The paramedic took over emergency medical treatment from the ships medical crew and the patient, secured into a stokes basket stretcher, was transferred onto the sea rescue craft and the EMS paramedic and NSRI medics continued with medical care onboard the sea rescue craft while the patient was brought to the NSRI Port Elizabeth sea rescue base and in the care of paramedics he was transported to hospital by EMS ambulance. Despite extensive efforts by hospital medical staff the patient passed away.
RUNZENG03
After a month of pursuit, the 'Run Zeng 03' was arrested by surveillance officers Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. The ship was the target of an operation related to a transnational crime syndicate, namely fishing theft in Indonesian waters, fuel oil smuggling and human slavery. The government promised to pursue the perpetrators of this crime down to the beneficiaries of the criminal practice of syndicating foreign vessels with national vessels. The 'Run Zeng 03' was captured in the Arafura Sea using the monitoring ship 'Paus 01' belonging to the PSDKP-KKP on May 19, 2024. The ship used prohibited fishing gear, namely trawling, with a catch of 30 tons of mixed fish species. The ship was taken to the PSDKP base in Tual, Maluku. In the initial interrogation, the crew stated that they departed from their home country in May 2023 and caught fish in Indonesian waters since Jan 12, 2024. The ship also carried 12 Indonesian crew members and 18 foreign crew members from China. The Acting Director General of Marine and Fisheries Resources Supervision at the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (PSDKP-KKP), Pung Nugroho Saksono, who led the operation to capture the foreign ships, stated that the capture was expected to uncover the underlying crimes of transnational and organized crime involving foreign-national fishing boat syndicates. The case will be further investigated. Report with photo: https://www.kompas.id/baca/english/2024/05/20/en-penerima-manfaat-akan-dijerat
POSTOJNA
Any civil liability for a ship accident during navigation lies with the captain and the vessel's owner, judge Décio Gabriel Gimenez, of the 3rd Federal Court of Santos (SP), ruled in the case of the accident of the 'Postojna' on Sep 29, 2011. Civil action for damages, including lost profits, which was filed by a terminal against the Port Authority of Santos (APS) and the agency of the freighterwas unfounded. The accident occurred due to the ship's maneuver carried out at the time of leaving the Port of Santos channel, after completion of loading of 44000 tons of sugar, bound to Indonesia, possibly due to the vessel colliding with debris from the previous shipwreck of the Greek cargo m/v 'Ais Giorgios', partially submerged since January 1974 due to a fire. Responsibility for navigation, as explained above, lies with the shipowner and the master (Law No. 9,537/1997). The plaintiff was the company Rumo. Due to rudder damage, the freighter was unable to continue its voyage and re-docked at the Rumo terminal until it was repaired. The company had allegedthat the measures adopted after the accident affected its operations, preventing it from fulfilling contracts signed with third parties. Therefore, it asked for the defendants to be sentenced to compensate it for the losses suffered and compensate the damages. The amount to be paid by the defendants, in the event of conviction, would be determined through an expert opinion, but the plaintiff gave the case a value of R$5 million. With the claim dismissed, the judge ordered the terminal to pay procedural costs and expenses, in addition to legal fees, set at 15% of the updated value of the action, considering the complexity of the case and the time required to resolve the controversy.
Libreville
22 and 36 nautical miles Northwest of Libreville the latest acts of piracy occurred in positions 00° 30.50’N 009°06.21’E and 00° 55.24N 009° 08 09E and involved two fishing trawlers named 'amerger II' and 'Amerger VIIÄ – the first taking place 20 nautical miles off Libreville and the second 36 n.miles off Libreville. Both incidents involved a single speedboat described as a skiff powered by three engines and having 13 pirates on board. The pirates were reported as being English-speakers which gives rise to suspicions of them being of Nigerian origin, despite this being some distance from Nigeria. The boarding of each trawler resulted in three of the crew from each vessel being kidnapped. The nationalities of those kidnapped are reported as three Indonesian, two Senegalese, and one South Korean.
Durban
On May 3, 2020, at 10.15 a.m. the NSRI Durban launched the sea rescue craft 'Alick Rennie' to transport a ShipsMed doctor to a bulk carrier at the outer anchorage off-shore of the Port of Durban. The Port Health Authorities had arranged for the doctor to take sample swabs from a crewman onboard the ship, which is due to enter Port, for Covid-19 laboratory testing prior to the ship being granted permission to enter Port. Observing all Covid-19 Department of Health and Port Health Authority safety regulations and protocols on arrival at the ship the doctor was transferred onto the ship and sample swabs were collected from the crewman. The doctor returned to the sea rescue craft accompanied by the samples that he had collected and he was brought into Durban Port without incident. Port Health Authorities evaluated the samples to determine safe passage for the ship to enter Port. The operation completed at 11.40 a.m.
KMP PERMATA LESTARI1
The KMP 'Permata Lestari 1', which was docked in a damaged condition in Bengkalis, caught fire on May 23, 2024, at around 10:00 a.m. WIB at the port of PT. Bumi Laksamana Jaya (BLJ). The Bengkalis Police immediately coordinated with the Fire Department to extinguish it. All 15 crew members were safe. The cause of the fire was still under investigation by the Bengkalis Water Police Unit (Satpolair). The ferry had not been operational for more than two weeks and was heavily damaged by the fire. Report with photos and video: https://www.rri.co.id/daerah/708616/penyebab-kmp-permata-lestari-1-terbakar-masih-dalam-penyelidikan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ3KArvbnGw
CG WALNUT
The oast Guard Cutter 'Paul Clark' has repatriated 31 migrants to Cuba on May 22, following multiple interdictions in the Florida Straits. The first interdiction occurred on the morning of May 17, when Sector Key West watchstanders received a report from the 'Walnut' of a migrant voyage 38 miles southwest of Marquesas, Florida. The 'Walnut' arrived on scene and safely embarked the migrants. The second interdiction occurred on the afternoon of May 17, after an Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew detected a migrant vessel 23 miles north of Matanzas, Cuba. Sector Key West watchstanders diverted the 'Walnut', which safely embarked the migrants. The final interdiction occurred on thze morning of May 18, when Sector Key West watchstanders received a report from a good Samaritan of a migrant venture 23 miles south of Plantation Key, Florida. Coast Guard Station Islamorada boat crews arrived on scene and safely embarked the migrants. Once aboard the Coast Guard cutter, all migrants were treated with dignity and respect, and receive food, water, shelter, and basic medical attention. Report with photo: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/3784117/coast-guard-repatriates-31-migrants-to-cuba/
Port Elizabeth
On April 30, 2020, at 11.15 a.m. the NSRI Port Elizabeth duty crew were alerted by TNPA (Transnet National Ports Authority) requesting assistance to evacuate a Filipino crew member of a bunkering tanker at anchorage off-shore of the Port of Port Elizabeth. The man required transportation to a dentist as soon as possible and considering the Covid-19 lockdown the Port Health Authorities advised the tasking of NSRI to carry out the operation, taking into consideration that NSRI are well prepared for all Covid-19 Department of Health protocols, regulations and precautions. At 1 p.m. the sea rescue craft 'JLT Rescuer' was launched and rendezvoused with the tanker thre miles off Port Elizabeth in calm seas. The patient was transferred onto the sea rescue craft and he was brought to shore and transported to a dentist appointment by the ships agent. At 3.30 p.m. the patient returned to the Port of Port Elizabeth and he boarded our sea rescue craft JLT Rescuer and we transported him back to the ship and returned to base without incident.
Grenaa
After the gas explosion aboard the Danish dredger vessel ‘Grete Fighter‘, 582 gt (IMO: 7944762), on April 23 in the port of Grenå,the Grenaa Shipyard has not yet received a report from the Labor Inspectorate on the cause of the accident which was thought to be be due to gas emissions or diesel fumes. However, the yard has already chosen to tighten security in several areas. On April 28, a joint meeting was held where staff and management discussed what they could do to be 100 percent sure the accident cannot recur. It was decided to buy a lot of technical equipment to prevent such an explosion in the future, and some new procedures for this type of work will be intrduced. The two survivors of the accident were in critical condition.