Several operations were coordinated by the CCS Tenerife of Salvamento Marítimo on the night of Sep 19. The 'Guardamar Calíope' along with the 'Salvamar Adhara' rescued 327 people from two cayucos. The 'Guardamar Calipoe' transferred them to La Restinga. During the same night, the 'Guardamar Urania' rescued 113 people and transferred them to the port of La Restinga, and the 'Salvamar Mizar' rescued 56 people from a cayuco and transferred them to San Sebastián de La Gomera. Tihs respnse was coordinated by the CCS Las Palmas of Salvamento Maritimo.
News
GUARDAMAR TALIA
On the morning of Sep 19, the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife and Las Palmas have coordinated the rescue of the occupants of four precarious boats with 222 people on board. The 'Salvamar Adhara' accompanied a boat with 66 sub-Saharan people on board to La Restinga. The 'Guardamar Calíope' rescued 38 sub-Saharan people, who also disembarked in La Restinga (El Hierro). The CCS Las Palmas coordinated the response to a boat with 66 sub-Saharan people on board, who were rescued by the 'Guardamar Concepción Arenal' and disembarked in Arguineguín. The 'Guardamar Talía' rescuesd 52 boat people, who were disembarked in Arrecife. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1836669327782588879
Kiel
Having seen its first ever LNG fuelling in May, the Port of Kiel has announced that, for the first time, two cruise vessels have bunkered LNG on the same day. The bunker operations took place on June 10, 2023, and involved the 'AIDAnova' – which became the first vessel to bunker LNG at the port in May – and MSC Cruises’ latest ship, the 'MSC Euribia'. The bunkering of the AIDA Cruises vessel by Titan capped its third fuelling at the Port of Kiel while LNG for the 'MSC Euribia' was supplied by Nordic energy company Gasum. MSC Cruises and Gasum have inked a long-term agreement for LNG supply to the 'MSC Euribia'. The companies have also signed a letter of intent (LOI) which aims to secure liquefied synthetic gas (e-LNG).
Iskenderun
The fire at the Port of Iskenderun has finally been extinguished, Turkey's ministry of defense announced on Feb 7. It was the second time that the ministry has reported that the fire has been put out; after the previous announcement, the blaze resumed at scale, and firefighters managed to contain it later that night. Iskenderun's container terminal is still closed due to the severe structural damage, which forced the facility to halt all operations. The magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck southern Turkey on Feb 6 had a significant impact on the port, toppling stacks of containers and cracking pavement. The physical damage is severe enough that container lines were diverting vessels to other ports, like nearby Mersin. The quake also sparked a fire in the center of the terminal's container storage area. Turkey's coast guard deployed a vessel to apply water from the quayside, and the Turkish air force and army sent aircraft to drop fire retardant on the blaze. The fire spread despite these efforts, but was finally contained in the night of Feb 7. Report with video: https://maritime-executive.com/article/fire-at-port-of-iskenderun-extinguished-after-two-days
GUARDAMAR CALIOPE
Several operations were coordinated by the CCS Tenerife of Salvamento Marítimo on the night of Sep 19. The 'Guardamar Calíope' along with the 'Salvamar Adhara' rescued 327 people from two cayucos. The 'Guardamar Calipoe' transferred them to La Restinga. During the same night, the 'Guardamar Urania' rescued 113 people and transferred them to the port of La Restinga, and the 'Salvamar Mizar' rescued 56 people from a cayuco and transferred them to San Sebastián de La Gomera. Tihs respnse was coordinated by the CCS Las Palmas of Salvamento Maritimo.
GUARDAMAR C.ARENAL
On the morning of Sep 19, the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife and Las Palmas have coordinated the rescue of the occupants of four precarious boats with 222 people on board. The 'Salvamar Adhara' accompanied a boat with 66 sub-Saharan people on board to La Restinga. The 'Guardamar Calíope' rescued 38 sub-Saharan people, who also disembarked in La Restinga (El Hierro). The CCS Las Palmas coordinated the response to a boat with 66 sub-Saharan people on board, who were rescued by the 'Guardamar Concepción Arenal' and disembarked in Arguineguín. The 'Guardamar Talía' rescuesd 52 boat people, who were disembarked in Arrecife. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1836669327782588879
Greenock
One of Scotland’s main cruise ports is set to experience its busiest year since records began. Greenock Ocean Terminal has 91 cruise liners booked into the Inverclyde town’s new dedicated pontoon across 2023 – a rise of over 25 per cent on last year. As many as 150,000 passengers and 38,000 crew members are expected to pass through the port over the course of this year. It’s more good news for the terminal in its second full season since Covid effectively closed down the cruise industry. Jim McSporran, Clydeport Port Director at Peel Ports said: “We’re extremely proud to be announcing a record cruise year for Greenock Ocean Terminal. “Welcoming cruise liners to Greenock is a hugely important aspect of our port offering and we’re delighted that we continue to attract and grow cruise numbers to the region. “This increase in tourism will benefit visitor attractions and businesses across Inverclyde and central Scotland, and we look forward to welcoming these visitors across the season.” “In an effort to showcase the port as the cruise gateway to the West Coast of Scotland, this year we are also investing in a promotional campaign to feature at the global cruise industry’s key annual gathering in the U.S.” Councillor Stephen McCabe, leader of Inverclyde Council, said: “The cruise sector here in Inverclyde continues to go from strength to strength and I’m delighted that this year is set to be the busiest yet with record numbers of ships and passengers, as well as a substantial number of crew visiting these shores. “It’s timely that with 2023 shaping up to be a bumper year for cruise calls that the finishing touches are being put on our new state-of-the-art Greenock cruise ship visitor centre which will provide our guests from around the world with a first class welcome to Inverclyde and the west coast of Scotland.
Iskenderun
Thick black smoke was rising from burning containers at Iskenderun Port on Feb 6, 2023. The fire was caused by containers that toppled over during the powerful earthquake that struck southeast Turkey. ATurkish Coast Guard vessel was assisting efforts to extinguish the blaze.
KATHRIN
The Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Paulo Rangel, has finally confirmed that the 'Kathrin' was indeed transporting explosive material for onward transport to Israel. The ship is heading for two ports on the Adriatic, one in Slovenia and the other in Montenegro, carrying explosive material, which is basically the material that would be used by the buyers of this material for their firms’ and companies’ own purposes. Meanwhile it was established that the material was destined for three countries, one of them Israel, and the other two being Poland and Slovakia. As of Sep 19, the 'Kathrin' was still in African waters with an ETA in Montenegro as of Oct 1. The ship will finish its cargo operations in the Adriatic Sea, and then the material will be transported by other vessels or by land to its final destinations. Half the cargo is to be delivered to companies that manufacture arms for Israel, the other half to companies that manufacture arms in Poland and Slovakia. The Portuguese government wasanalysing the situation, and was in contact with the competent authorities.. Earlier, the ship was prevented from docking in Namibia due to the Israeli link to the cargo and has been the subject of several complaints for allegedly supplying war material to be used in Gaza.
MSC RIONA
On Sep 16, 2024, the boom of a gantry crane at the Yantian Port toplled onto the berthed 'MSC Riona'. The incident caused the suspension of operation berth-2 of the port. Mo casualties were reported. the gantry crane was being prepared for handling when the arm collapsed onto the container stacks aboard the vessel. Containers were dislodged and damaged, some boxes fell into the water from the deck of ship, which had arrived from Chiwan and was reported to have suffered damage too. The port officials ordered operations suspended for the ship as well as with two other gantry cranes of the same age and manufacturer. Operations were disrupted on berth 2, but functioning normally elsewhere in the port. An investigation was launched. Reports with photos: https://m.163.com/dy/article/JC826GNN0519CUIJ.html https://turkdeniz.com/msc-riona-isimli-konteyner-gemisinin-uzerine-limandaki-vinc-devrildi
Ashkelon
One person is was and two others were missing after a crane collapsed into the water on an Ashkelon pier latein the night of March 14, 2023. The collapse of the crane was caused by unusual weather and strong winds. The injured person was in moderate condition and is receiving treatment at Barzilai Medical Center. Attempts to contact two people who had been working on the site of the crane have been unsuccessful, leading police to believe that they were missing after falling into the sea. Extensive search and rescue efforts were commenced with the help of police diving units, the elite 669 Search and Rescue unit, the Israeli Navy and others. The body of a man of about 60 years of age was found on Beersheba Beach in Ashdod on March 15. The gas pier at the Rotenberg power plant in Ashkelon was damaged. The Electric Company formed a team to investigate the incident. Reports with photos: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-734237 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-734373
Kiel
The Port of Kiel expects another good season in 2023, resulting in 218 cruise calls, said its MD Dirk Claus in the morning of Jan 17, 2023, as part of a presentation reflecting on last year's results. It follows 2022's record-breaking 244 calls, which saw the port handle over 2.24m passengers, 836,000 of those from cruise vessels. The number of calls in 2019 was 37% less by comparison, numbering 178, and passenger volumes 4.1% lower. 2020 had been forecast to become a record season for Kiel, with 200 calls and 880,000 passengers, but aspirations were dashed owing to the pandemic. This year, a number of larger vessels are scheduled to arrive at Kiel on multiple occasions making the gross tonnage of arriving ships similar to 2022. For 2023, the choice of routes and destinations approached from Kiel will be slightly broader. Moving into the future, Claus expects Kiel to settle on between 200 and 250 cruise calls annually. According to the port, last year’s promising results were the result of ‘intense planning’ with international cruise operators. While 11 calls were cancelled owing to the conflict in Ukraine and the resulting loss of St Petersburg from itineraries, nine were newly added as a result of rerouting by operators. Looking ahead, there will be a strong focus on greener shipping with Claus hoping that between 60 and 100 calls can be supplied with green shore power this year. He stated that Kiel will continue to look at strengthening shore power in line with its corporate sustainability strategy to lower carbon emissions. Work on the new Ostuferhafen shore power plant is expected to conclude towards the end of this year, resulting in Kiel being able to offer shoreside connectivity at all its ferry and cruise terminals from 2024. Along with this €17m investment, a further €2m will be invested to install solar arrays. The systems, which will be fitted on roofs at Kiel Port, are intended to cover up to 30% of the port's electricity requirements in the long term. Kiel’s first call is expected to arrive April 7 with the river vessel 'Frederic Chopin'. The first cruise ship of the season, Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines’ 'Balmoral', will arrive a week later. The largest ships to call will be 'MSC Euribia' and 'AIDAnova'. At the other end of the scale, the 'Ocean Majesty' will visit Kiel on six occasions while chartered to Hansa Touristik. The vessel, which celebrates its 57th anniversary this year, is popular with the German source market. One of its calls is scheduled to occur on June 18 during the Kieler Woche sailing festival which will run from June 17-25. Traditionally, this marks the peak of the cruise season with this year no exception: 22 calls are expected by Kiel at the same time as the event takes place. While the highest number of calls is expected between mid-April and the end of September as usual, some ships will continue to call later in the year. 'AIDAnova'’s last departure is scheduled for November 4 whilst December 20 will see Phoenix Reisen's 'Amera' arrive at Kiel as part of a pre-Christmas itinerary. The season will draw to a close a few days later with the 'Spirit of Discovery' on December 29. Costa-, AIDA-, MSC- and TUI Cruises will again be the port's largest cruise customers. The majority of calls account for turnarounds serving the German-speaking source markets, but a number of transit calls will also take place, P&O Cruises’ Britannia, Swiss Ruby, Holland America Line’s 'Nieuw Statendam' and Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ 'Seven Seas Splendor' among them. As in previous years, the Ostuferhafen outside the city centre will be heavily utilised by MSC Cruises and most other cruise ships will arrive at the Ostseekai.