The 'Baltic Star' may remain at the quayside in Lunde in Kramfors for some more time. The Land and Environmental Court in Östersund has upheld the County Administrative Board's decision to freeze Kramfors municipality's relocation claim until the matter has been investigated. In November 2023, the Kramfors municipality decided on a fine of SEK 200,000 for each month that the ship was left in the privately owned port in Lunde. The municipality believed that the ship is serving as a residence, and therefore requires a building permit to be allowed to lie at the quay. The owner Leif-Ivan Karlsson, on the other hand, claims that the ship is a leisure boat, and that the municipality cannot therefore require a building permit. In addition, it is located in Lunde for repair and maintenance. The matter has not yet been decided, and therefore the County Administrative Board in Västernorrland decided to approve the owner's request for inhibition of the municipality's fine decision until further notice. This means that enforcement is postponed until the matter is settled and that no fines can be exacted if the ship is not moved. The municipality appealed, but now the Land and Environmental Court has upheld the County Administrative Board's decision. The 'Baltic Star' - which according to a previous decision was to be moved no later than June 1, will most likely remain in Lunde for the time being.
News
SEA FALCON
On the night of May 24, 2024, the “Sea Falcon”, en route from Caucedo, was in danger of sinking approximately 22 nautical miles south of Puerto Rico, while transiting toward the island of Tortola with four people on board, transporting two vehicles, construction materials, glass and a container with dry products. The US Coast Guard received a distress call from the captain, reporting that there was a crack in the ship's hull and that the estimated flooding rate was approximately 300 gallons per minute. The crew used water suction pumps that were not powerful enough to control the amount of water entering the ship. The USCG observers issued an UMIB to alert nearby vessel traffic of the danger and launched a Jayhawk helicopter to provide assistance at the scene and notified local marine units of the United Rapid Action Force (FURA) of the Puerto Rico Police. As the USCG helicopter arrived on scene, a rescue swimmer was deployed aboard the ship to assess the situation. He confirmed approximately three inches of water in the engine room due to a three-inch crack in the hull. Once a portable drain pump was installed, the rescue swimmer confirmed that the water level decreased to approximately two inches and the vessel could continue its voyage. The USCG helicopter crew later recovered their rescue swimmer and returned to Borinquen Air Station in Aguadilla. On May 28 at 11:48 a.m., the “Sea Falcon” safely arrived in Tortola.
Rostock
On May 2, a HLC 295000 heavy load crane of Liebherr mounted on the deck of the 'Orion I' crashed in the Seaport of Rostock during a test when lifting a pontoon which was filled with 5.550 tons of water. The crane boom broke off, and parts fell onto the 'Orion I', which started to list to port side, and onto the quay edge. Heavy metal pieces flew around. Five people inside the crane's cabin were injured by the heave jerk. The fire brigade, ambulances and police attended with a large contingent. They tried to free the victims from the steel mesh. There were two serious and three minor injuries. A total of 120 people were on board the 'Orion I' who were now being evacuated and looked after. A rescue helicopter has landed. In addition, large amounts of oil leaked out, which the fire brigade has to collect before it got into the water. It is the second accident on the Liebherr site within a few months. In January, two loading cranes fell into the water during tests. The salvage then took several months. Reports with photos and video: https://www.nonstopnews.de/meldung/32916 https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/mecklenburg-vorpommern/Rostock-Erneutes-Unglueck-mit-Hafenkran,hafenkran156.html https://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/panorama/id_87809036/rostock-krank-knickt-im-hafen-ab-fuenf-verletzte.html
Everett WA
The American destroyer USS 'Kidd' returned to Everett after nearly 50 crew members aboard were tested positive for coronavirus as of April 27, 2020. This was the second reported outbreak of COVID-19 aboard a US Navy vessel at sea. After concerns were raised about cases aboard the USS 'Theodore Roosevelt', one sailor assigned to that ship died from coronavirus complications. Roughly half the crew members on the USS 'Kidd' have been tested for the virus, and some have been evacuated. 45% of the ship have been tested for COVID-19, with 47 total positive results. Two Sailors have been medically evacuated. 15 sailors have been transferred to USS 'Makin Island (LHD 8)' for monitoring due to persistent symptoms. None were in the ICU or on ventilators. Sailors aboard the USS 'Kidd' were wearing PPE and N95 masks. Initial COVID-19 testing of sailors from the USS 'Theodore Roosevelt' were now complete, there are 955 active cases, along with 14 recovered cases. The USS 'Kidd' was on a counter narcotics mission' when ait was reported at least 18 crew had fallen ill with the virus.
SHI ZI FENG
The 'Shi Zi Feng' got stuck in the harbour channel while returning from the deep sea ship to the Chattogram port's jetty in the Karnaphuli river near the boat club on May 28, 2024, at around 1:15 p.m. The propeller was damaged when it allided with the Gupta buoy opposite of the Patenga container terminal due to a steering failure. A salvage vessel tried to refloat the vessel, which was not hampering the movement of ships in the port. Due to the Cyclone Remal, 19 ships, including the 'Shi Zi Feng', had been sent into the deep sea from the port jetty on the morning of May 26 after the Bangladesh Meteorological Department issued a distress signal number 9 for the port. As the weather became normal, the ships started returning at the jetty. Report with photo: https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/chinese-flagged-vessel-gets-stuck-harbour-channel-while-returning-ctg-port-jetty-862566
CG SEA DRAGON
The US Coast Guard decommissioned the 'Sea Dog (WPB 87373)' and 'Sea Dragon (WPB 87367)' on May 29, 2024, during a ceremony in St. Marys, Georgia. Rear Adm. Douglas M. Schofield, Coast Guard District Seven commander, presided over the ceremony honoring the years of service the Coast Guard Cutters provided to the nation. The marine protector-class cutters assigned to Coast Guard Maritime Force Protection Unit Kings Bay in the Coast Guard’s Seventh District. The 'Sea Dragon' was commissioned in January 2008 and the 'Sea Dog' was commissioned in July 2009. Following the decommissioning ceremony, the cutters will be transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point. The Coast Guard cutters 'Sea Devil (WPB 87368)' and 'Sea Fox (WPB 87374)' have relocated from Bangor, Washington, to replace the 'Sea Dog' and 'Sea Dragon'. Report with photo: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/3788815/photo-release-coast-guard-cutters-sea-dog-sea-dragon-decommissioned-in-st-marys/
Marseille
The 'AIDAblu' made a brief stopover yesterday in Marseille on April 26, 2020, to embark several hundred crew members of one of his sisterships, the 'AIDAsol', which has been moored in the port for 1,5 months. The transfer took place to facilitate the repatriation of AIDA personnel via Germany. The 'AIDAblu' set sail again in the afternoon. At the same time, another cruise ship which had been berthed in Marseille since last month, the 'Europa 2' of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, set sail to also return to Germany, its arrival in Hamburg was scheduled for May 2. The Marseille areas now hosted six cruise ships, the 'Costa Smeralda', 'MSC Magnifica' and 'AIDAsol', 'Le Boréal', 'L’Austral' and 'Le Lyrial'. The repatriation operations of the international personnel of these ships was still in progress, in particular via flights chartered by the owners. This was particularly the case for the crew members of the 'MSC Magnifica', which arrived on April 20 and who also landed 4 tonnes of food surplus, donated to local associations to help the most disadvantaged.
ELBEIK
On May 27, 2024, the port of Tarragona has finally been able to close the sale of the'Elbeik', which had caught fire on Aug 6, 2021, on the port's anchorage, for an amount of 88,000 euros to the company Eructa Shipping Inc. After two previous auctions that were successless, the sale puts an end to a process that began in August 2021 when the fire damaged ship was transferred to the extension of the Levante dock. where it has been docked and in a state of abandonment ever since. After the two previous auctions, the port of Tarragona had the option of carrying out a direct sale under special conditions that the ship met, such as the state of deterioration being very great, which poses a risk for its stay in the dock as it could sink, and that a year had passed since the last auction. In the last Board of Directors of the port of Tarragona, the award of the sale for an amount of 88,000 Euros to the Eructa Shipping Inc. was approved. Now the company has 20 days to make the payment and then sign the purchase and sale contract with the Authority. Port. Once this procedure is completed, the company will have one month to remove the ship from the Tarragona docks. Report with photo: https://www.elpuntavui.cat/societat/article/5-societat/2423196-el-port-de-tarragona-ven-l-elbeik-per-88-000-euros.html
CG-SEA-DOG
The US Coast Guard decommissioned the 'Sea Dog (WPB 87373)' and 'Sea Dragon (WPB 87367)' on May 29, 2024, during a ceremony in St. Marys, Georgia. Rear Adm. Douglas M. Schofield, Coast Guard District Seven commander, presided over the ceremony honoring the years of service the Coast Guard Cutters provided to the nation. The marine protector-class cutters assigned to Coast Guard Maritime Force Protection Unit Kings Bay in the Coast Guard’s Seventh District. The 'Sea Dragon' was commissioned in January 2008 and the 'Sea Dog' was commissioned in July 2009. Following the decommissioning ceremony, the cutters will be transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point. The Coast Guard cutters 'Sea Devil (WPB 87368)' and 'Sea Fox (WPB 87374)' have relocated from Bangor, Washington, to replace the 'Sea Dog' and 'Sea Dragon'. Report with photo: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/3788815/photo-release-coast-guard-cutters-sea-dog-sea-dragon-decommissioned-in-st-marys/
San Diego
The number of coronavirus cases aboard the USS 'Kidd' rose to 64 as the Navy destroyer pulled into port at San Diego on April 28, 2020, to get medical care for the crew and to disinfect and decontaminate the ship. The 'Kidd' was the second Navy ship to have an outbreak of the disease while at sea, the other being the USS 'Theodore Roosevelt', an aircraft carrier that has been docked at Guam for a month and has more than 900 sailors with confirmed cases of COVID-19, but the entire crew has now been tested. The Navy has moved swiftly to get the 'Kidd''s crew ashore. That was a point of contention with the 'Roosevelt', whose skipper, Capt. Brett Crozier, felt compelled to write to several other commanders pleading for more urgent Navy action to protect his crew of nearly 5,000. Crozier was then relieved of command for what the Navy's top civilian official at the time, Thomas Modly, called poor judgment. Modly resigned several days later, and the Navy is now seeking higher-level approval to reverse his move and restore Crozier to command. The Navy said that 63% of the 'Kidd''s crew of more than 300 had been tested as of April 28. One sailor was medically evacuated to the United States on April 22 after experiencing shortness of breath. Fifteen were transferred to another ship with a medical facility for closer observation of symptoms. Sailors being removed from the 'Kidd' at San Diego will be isolated with twice-daily medical screenings. Crew members who have tested negative will enter quarantine for a period of observation, with military health professionals monitoring them for symptoms. Also, a small contingent of sailors who tested negative will remain on the ship for essential services and deep cleaning. The cleaning is expected to take two weeks. The destroyer had been off the Pacific coast of Central American doing counter-narcotics operations. The Navy said no deployed ships currently have known coronavirus cases aboard. 13 ships that previously had one or more active cases while in port have zero cases now.
Flensburg
The Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft shipyard a which had been operating at a loss for some time, filed for self-administered insolvency on April 24. The goal of the shipyard’s filing was to permit it to start afresh. The future of Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft in the medium term was in building Ro-Ro ferries, according to the message delivered by the management at a workers meeting on Sunday April 26. The move is specifically designed to allow the company to start from fresh without existing contractual obligations to customers and suppliers. Though an administrator will be brought in from outside the company, the company management will continue to control the business which is a different process to bankruptcy in German law. Investor Lars Windhorst is prepared to put money into the business through his Tennor Holding investment vehicle. Tennor Holding took 100% control of the yard in 2019. He has said, however, that the money should not be used on loss making contracts. The former majority owner Siem Industries is interested in contracting 4 further Ro-Ro ferries from the yard. Siem recently took delivery of LIEKUT, the eighth of a series of vessels built by FSG for the company to charter out. FSG had been making significant losses for a number of years. The Siem group acquired the company for a token €1 back in November 2014 after severe liquidity problems. Those losses massively increased in recent years, however, with the yard losing an eye watering €111m in 2018. The hugely increased losses were due in part to delivery delays with Irish Ferries 'W.B. Yeats' and the subsequent penalty payments made to Irish Continental Group (ICG). The agreed contract price to build the 'W.B. Yeats' is understood to have left little to no margin for the yard in the first place.