In the evening May 22 2012 ferry Aqua Jewel while leaving Kavala port, Greece, with 40 passengers on board, bound for Limnos, Aegean sea, allided with the quay and then with two vessels, general cargo vessel Maria I and not specified vessel Dimitrios. All vessels were damaged. Ferry got scratches and dents on a portside and two cracks above the waterline, Maria I suffered crack portside some 30 centimeters. There are Maria 1 and Maria I general cargo vessels, both may be the vessel in question, judging from their last known positions. No injures to crews of the vessels or to the passengers. Ferry detained for investigation. Maritime Bulletin www.odin.tc

Beached for scrapping in Gadani Beach

arrived Gadani Beach anchorage, scrapping expected

arrived Gadani Beach anchorage, scrapping expected

arrived Gadani Beach anchorage, scrapping expected

The "Seabourn Sojourn" had to cancel its scheduled visit to Delfzijl on May 23, 2012. The strong East wind makes it impossible to berth as the flood will be half a metre less than necessary.

A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew from the Air Station Traverse City, Mich., medically evacuated an ailing crew member from the "Algoma Olympic" in the Lake Superior on May 21, 2012, in the evening. The vessel contacted emergency responders at Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton, Ontario, reporting one of the crewmen, a Canadian citizen, was suffering from blackouts and hallucinations, among other symptoms. Due to the vessel’s location, about 20 miles west of Whitefish Point in Whitefish, Mich., the emergency responders contacted U.S. Coast Guard search and rescue controllers at Sector Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. After conferring with an on-call flight surgeon, it was determined the man needed to be evacuated. SAR controllers directed the launch of an aircrew aboard an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Air Station Traverse City. The aircrew arrived on scene at 2:21 p.m. and hoisted the man into the helicopter. He was transported to Sault Ste. Marie Municipal Airport, where a waiting ambulance crew took him to War Memorial Hospital in Sault Ste Marie. The "Algoma Olympic" was en route to Quebec.

The decision to tow the "ID Integrity" to Cairns to be repaired was chosen because a crew member of the escort tug "PB Leichhardt" fell ill. Other factors were weather conditions, repair facilities and the shorter distance to Cairns, according to the ID Wallem Ship Management. The ship is being towed by the tug "Pacific Responder" and escorted by PB ​​Leichhardt. The third tug, the "PT Kotor" was released after approval by the AMSA, which decided that one escort ship was enough. The ID Wallem Ship Management expected that the ship will be safe in port in Cairns within 24 hours depending on the weather.

Six Somalis go on trial in a Paris court on Tuesday charged with taking the 30 crew of luxury sailing ship Le Ponant hostage in the Gulf of Aden in 2008. The six men, aged 25 to 50, face life in prison if convicted of kidnapping and theft as part of a gang after they were arrested in a French airborne operation on land in Somalia after a ransom was paid. Only one admits to being a pirate, two admit to having been aboard the elegant 88-metre three-master but only to sell goats, cigarettes and the mild narcotic khat. The other three deny ever having set foot on the boat. Le Ponant left the Seychelles on March 30, 2008 with 30 crew and no passengers on board, headed for Yemen where they were to take on passengers for a cruise. On entering the notorious Gulf of Aden on April 4,2008 the ship was boarded by pirates armed with assault rifles who forced the crew to head for Somalia. More to read at au.news.yahoo.com...

Italian Costa Cruises have decided to deploy a second cruise ship, Costa Atlantica, to Asia from May 2013. The 2,680-guest Costa Atlantica features 1,057 cabins. Having previously operated the 1,680-guest Costa Classica in Asia, the double positioning of the 2,394-pax Costa Victoria and Costa Atlantica in Asia will offer a combined daily passenger capacity of 5,074. More to read: ttgasia.com/artic...

The Boudicca cruise liner was making a 13-night trip to the Canary Islands when it was hit with a suspected norovirus outbreak, which causes vomiting and diarrhoea. The ship, which was carrying 800 passengers, was met by ambulances at a port yesterday (May 21st, 2012) following the ordeal. Witnesses said a woman in her 80s was taken off the liner by helicopter after having a heart attack. It’s not know if this was linked to the bug, which is highly contagious, but many other passengers suffered through an ordeal. "There were two nurses wandering around all the time visiting people, most of them elderly," a passenger told the UK's Daily Mirror. More to read: www.theaustralian...

A backlog of ships anchored off the Illawarra coast has grown because of the small coal stockpile and planned maintenance at Port Kembla’s busy coal terminal. Port Kembla Port Corporation chief executive officer Dom Figliomeni said he could not remember more vessels being queued at once. ‘‘If you really looked at it, ideally you would have one ship at berth and probably three or four at anchor, which is what we used to have until recently,’’ he said. Fifteen ships at anchor yesterday were waiting to access the Port Kembla Coal Terminal (PKCT). Mr Figliomeni said the terminal was very busy, which meant any delays had a flow-on effect. www.illawarramerc...

Summer 2013 will see Royal Caribbean International deploy nine ships in Europe, including three ships based from UK ports. In addition to Independence of the Seas, Adventure of the Seas and Brilliance of the Seas sailing from UK ports, Barcelona-based Liberty of the Seas and Serenade of the Seas, and Italy-based Navigator of the Seas and Splendour of the Sea, today Royal Caribbean completed its 2013 European deployment with the addition of Legend of the Seas sailing from Venice and Rome and Vision of the Seas homeporting in Copenhagen and Stockholm. In total Royal Caribbean International will offer 276 sailings to 88 culture-rich ports on 58 exciting European itineraries for 2013.

The ID Integrity lost power on Friday, May 18th, 2012 about 65 nautical miles east of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park boundary. It passed safely over Shark Reef on the weekend and is now under tow to Cairns instead of Townsville due to weather conditions and a tug boat crew member taking ill, owners ID Wallem Shipmanagement say. The ID Integrity is being towed by AMSA's Pacific esponder, escorted by the PB Leichhardt. A third tug, PT Kotor, went to its aid but was not needed. The carrier is due to arrive in port on Wednesday May 23rd, subject to weather conditions, the company says.

Boxship Guang Yi suffered engine failure after leaving Quanzhou, China, in Taiwan Strait, on May 19 2012. Vessel either returned under own power to Quanzhou, or was towed, same day, and apparently after fixing problem sailed again to Taichung, Taiwan, arriving there May 20. Maritime Bulletin www.odin.tc