The master of the 'Alfred', that grounded off Swona island on July 5, 2022, almost certainly fell asleep and allowed the ferry to swing towards land, and he regularly sailed very close to the coast, an official investigation by the UK Department for Transport’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) concluded on MAy 22, 2024. A total of 41 passengers and crew were injured and almost all the vehicles aboard, and the ferry’s port bulbous bow were damaged. The MAIB report highlighted “key safety issues” as the ferry routinely passing too close to land, fatigue leading to loss of awareness at a critical point in the vessel’s passage and lack of assurance that procedures were being followed. It recommended to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency that passage plans were available during inspections and surveys, and guidance was issued to ferry operators over the need to secure heavy objects. The MAIB said UK domestic ferries’ exemption from carrying voyage data recorders should be reviewed. The branch also called on Pentland Ferries to ensure it recorded passenger details and injuries after such incidents. Report with photo: https://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/pentland-ferries-captain-almost-certainly-fell-asleep-before-vessel-grounded-off-orkney-injuring-41-4638072
News
DALI
On May 22 Maryland Governor Wes Moore said the 'Dali' will be in Baltimore for four to six weeks, while crews remove pieces of the bridge, damaged containers and parts of the roadway still on board. They will also make a number of temporary fixes. Once this is done, it will be sent to Norfolk. He did not specify which shipyard will receive the ship. The crew members now have the chance to spend some time off the ship for the first time since the initial collapse. After the ship was removed, there is now a 400 foot wide by 50 foot deep channel for 24/7 operations at the Port of Baltimore. The Coastguard was working to expand this further, while clearing additional rubble from the bottom of the channel.
Houston
Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) announced a series of projects, totaling over $170 million of capital investment, that will increase efficiency, add product liquidity, and enhance blending capabilities at its Pasadena and Galena Park terminals, part of its best-in-class refined products storage hub on the Houston Ship Channel. In response to growing customer demand, KMI’s liquids terminal platform now boasts 10 ship docks, 38 barge spots, 20 inbound pipelines providing connectivity to 10 regional refineries and chemical plants, 15 outbound pipelines, 14 cross-channel lines, and approximately 43 million barrels of storage on the Houston Ship Channel, North America’s leading port for energy exports.
Takoradi
Expansion works on the Takoradi Port have started with the construction of a multipurpose on-dock Atlantic Container Terminal. The project will see the port basin being dredged to create a 16-metre depth and land reclamation for the building of five new berths to hold bigger capacity vessels. A visit to the Takoradi Port in the Western Region revealed that the contractors were casting the foundation stones for the quay wall to herald the expansion project at the port. The project, being developed by Ibistek Ghana Limited at a cost of $475 million, marks the first time a wholly owned Ghanaian firm has been engaged in port development in the country. The Atlantic terminal, which will be the major development in the history of the Takoradi port when completed, will have a cargo holding space of one million twenty-footer equivalent units (TEUs), an upscale from the average container traffic of about 55,000 TEUs a year.
HATTERAS
At a dual ceremony held at the Hatteras Village ferry docks on May 20, 2024, the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s (NCDOT) Ferry Division and the U.S. Coast Guard honoured the crew of the 'Hatteras' for their rescue of two men and their dog on Jan 12, 2024. Captain Bill Davis, Chief Engineer Robbie Meekins, Oiler Amanda Przygodzinski, and the crew members Gerald Huneycutt, David Butler, and Calob Fulford were onboard the 'Hatteras', tying up the ferry at the Ocracoke-South Dock Terminal, when they noticed two men hanging onto an overturned boat, and swiftly floating out of Hatteras Inlet and toward the Atlantic Ocean. The weather conditions were worsening, the current was strong, and the two men were getting sucked out to sea, Captain Bill Davis sounded the general alarm, and the crew snapped into action. The crew immediately launched a rescue boat and went to the scene, where they found the two men clinging to the side of the vessel, and a dog trapped underneath. The two men had waders on, and were having trouble staying afloat. The strong current combined with the frigid 52-degree water temperature made the situation critical. Due to the crew’s rapid response and training, it didn’t take long for the team to pull both victims and the dog out of the water, and shuttle them back to land, with no injuries reported. In addition to the NCDOT’s Extra Mile Award, Corrie Sergent, Deputy Commander for U.S. Coast Guard Sector North Carolina, also presented the crew with the Certificate of Merit and Recognition of Notable Services that have Assisted Greatly in Furthering the Aims and Functions of the Coast Guard. Multiple agencies and community members were in attendance at the ceremony, including the majority of Coast Guardsmen from Station Hatteras Inlet. Report with photos: https://islandfreepress.org/outer-banks-news/six-member-ferry-crew-honored-by-ncdot-u-s-coast-guard-for-heroic-january-rescue/
VENTURA
Nearly 250 passengers were affected by gatro illness aboard the 'Ventura' off the Canary Islands. Although health measures have been taken to stem the gastroenteritis pandemic, some vacationers have had to isolate themselves in their cabins. Nearly 3,000 passengers and 1,200 crew members were on board the cruise ship. To contain the disease, vacationers had to follow strict health protocols The 'Ventura' had left the port of Southampton, UK, on May 11 for a 14-day cruise around the Spanish islands. During the last four days, things have gotten complicated. Enhanced disinfection has taken place at the port of Tenerife. The measures put in place involved the closure of on-board laundries and a ban on serving passengers at buffets. There would have been 150 of them isolating themselves in their cabin. Staff brought them food and bottles of water during her isolation. The testimonies collected from passengers seem to point towards a virus present on board before their boarding.
Hamburg
Germany’s largest universal port remains on a growth course, achieving a distinct 4.1 percent advance to 69.4 million tons in seaborne cargo handling in the first half of 2019. Especially good growth trend in the general cargo segment, up 6.1 percent at 48.4 million tons, was the main contributor to the excellent figures for total and container handling. The total for bulk cargo handling was just 0.3 percent lower than for last year’s first half at 21.0 million tons. Germany’s largest universal port remains on a growth course, achieving a distinct 4.1 percent advance to 69.4 million tons in seaborne cargo handling in the first half of 2019. Especially good growth trend in the general cargo segment, up 6.1 percent at 48.4 million tons, was the main contributor to the excellent figures for total and container handling. The total for bulk cargo handling was just 0.3 percent lower than for last year’s first half at 21.0 million tons.
Sabetta
Icebreaker assistance and ice restrictions for ships entering the basin of Section No.1 at the Port of Sabetta, Yamal and access channel are canceled as of 00:00 Moscow time, August 6. The corresponding order was signed by the Port Harbourmaster Nikolay Nesterov. The order says that there is a possibility of separately floating ice floes, therefore masters of ships sailing in this water area of the Port of Sabetta and on approaches to the port are advised to exercise caution. Arctic Port of Sabetta is built on the western shore of the Gulf of Ob (Kara Sea) for transshipment of hydrocarbons from the South-Tambey gas condensate field on the Yamal peninsula to the Western Europe, South America and APR countries under Yamal LNG project. The project envisages the construction of an LNG plant capable of producing 16.5 million metric tonnes of LNG and 1.35 million tonnes of gas condensate annually
ICGS ABHINAV
Despite challenging conditions, the ICGS 'Abhinav' successfully pumpe outd the engine compartment of the Indian fishing vessel 'Gurovayoorappan' with 13 crew members on board, responding to a distress call 30 nautical miles off Chavakkad, Kerala. Following the rectification of defects, the ship safely entered Munambam fishing harbour on May 21, 2024. Report with photo: https://news.abplive.com/kerala/kerala-indian-coast-guard-rescues-13-crew-members-from-sinking-fishing-boat-gurovayoorappan-1689383
SEA-EYE 4
The 'Sea Eye 4' rescued 52 boat people in the central Mediterranean on the evening of May 20. Two people required emergency medical care. The operation took place in the Maltese SAR zone. On the afternoon, the ship received an emergency call from the rescue ship 'Mare*Go', which had found the unseaworthy and overcrowded fiberglass boat and was able to equip the occupants with life jackets and stabilize the boat. Since the weather was threatening to worsen, the 'Sea Eye 4' was notified, which arrived at the scene after about a two-hour voyage. Upon arrival, the boat was no longer able to reach a safe port under its own power. Two of the migrants were initially unable to get on board independently due to severe pain and had to be hoisted out of the boat using a rescue seat. Fortunately, the initial suspicion of a head or spinal injury was not confirmed during the examination in the on-board hospital, and the condition improved over time with pain medication. At around 10:30 p.m., the 'Sea Eye 4' had successfully completed the evauation. Most of the castaways wree from Syria. The weather conditions deteriorated significantly during the night, but despite of this, Ravenna has been assigned to disembark the migrants, which meant five more days on the Mediterranean with an ETa as of May 25. Several patients complained of painful bruises that they sustained during the turbulent crossing in the overcrowded boat. Due to the bad weather and high waves, many of those rescued also were suffering from seasickness. The health checks that have been carried out so far and have revealed no further serious illnesses.
Monfalcone
ENCHANTED PRINCESS, the fifth in a line of six Royal Class ships built for Princess Cruises, was floated out on 6 August at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Monfalcone.
Immingham
On August 1, ABP announced new customers for the Port of Immingham this week: The port welcomed the first vessel in a new contract with customers Top Blue and The Fuel Trading Company. The new deal is expected to bring an extra 30,000 tonnes per year through the Port of Immingham – the largest Port by tonnage in the UK. The cargo being delivered is Prilled Urea which is a key part of the mixture for the AdBlue market.