Bookings have been suspended to Whalsay’s ferry service after the 'Hendra' suffered a damage to its main engine on May 9, 2024. The service was thus running to the 'Linga’s timetable on a first come, first serve basis. The damage has been identified on a piston on the starboard main engine. Those who needed to get to a medical appointment were urged to let the crew know so that they could be prioritised.
News
DALI
The Key Bridge Response Unified Command was scheduled to use precision cuts made with small charges to remove a large section of the Francis Scott Key Bridge wreckage from on top of the 'Dali'. The exact time of the precision cuts depended on multiple environmental and operational factors. The small charges, a standard controlled demolition tool, will split the large section of truss at specific locations to create multiple, smaller sections, which allows salvors to use cranes and barges already on scene to remove these sections of the bridge and ultimately remove the 'Dali' from the channel. On May 9, the Captain of the Port (COTP) has established a transit plan to afford recreational vessels the opportunity for transit through the Key Bridge Response Safety Zone. Traffic will be one-way at a time during one period: on May 12, oubound transits will be permitted in the afternoon from 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm, and INBOUND transits will be permitted from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm. The Unified Command or Captain of the Port may cancel these time periods at any time for safety reasons. Mariners must monitor VHF Channel 16 and 81A while transiting the area.
Papenburg
The Meyer shipyard located in Papenburg, Germany, announced, they secured an order for a new cruise ship. The new customer is NYK who placed an order for a medium size cruise ship for their brand Asuka Cruises. Full article + image: https://www.cruisedeck.de/meyer-werft-sichert-sich-neubau-auftrag/
Cochin
The Cochin Port Trust handled a record 3.20 million tonnes of cargo in December 2020, a monthly record volume for it. The volume is a 10.55 per cent growth over December 2019, said Cochin Port Trust chairperson M. Beena, in a message to the employees and officials of the port trust. Container movement too touched a consistent 60,000 TEUs consecutively in the four months leading to December. The surge in the movement of cargo is being looked upon as new shoots in the port business after the plans of 2020 were washed away in the COVID-19 pandemic. The growth in cargo movement is “charting a new growth trajectory. However, we need to find new vistas for revenue generation by optimum utilisation of resources available to us,” the chairperson told the port community. The port has been recovering from the losses, which had affected it for the past decade. But the pandemic and resultant loss in business had pushed the port into the red. But the port was expected to make a recovery by the end of 2021, the chairperson said. There was optimism stemming from the fact that though there was a substantial fall in cargo movement in the first half of the current financial year, there was some recovery in the second half. The port trust was also optimistic that the inauguration of the Kochi-Mangaluru LNG pipeline earlier this month would pave the way for more gas volumes and revenue for the port. Meanwhile, figures from the Indian Ports Association showed that ports across the country suffered owing to the pandemic and its impact on the global economy. The average fall across the major ports in the country is nearly nine per cent for the period. Mumbai suffered a fall of more than 17 per cent and the Momugao traffic fell more than 23 per cent and JNPT traffic was down by over 12 per cent. Haldia Dock Complex, Paradip, Visakhapatnam, and New Mangaluru suffered lesser falls in business.
RIDENS
On the evening of May 6, the CROSS Gris-Nez was informed that a migrant boat was in difficulty off the coast of Gravelines and deployed the 'Ridens' to assist, which launches its rescue boat to reach the site. The crew recovered 22 people. Several people still present on board the migrant boat refused the assistance offered by French means and continued their journey under appropriate surveillance. The castaways recovered by the Ridens were then dropped off at the port of Dunkirk. Once at the dock, were are taken care of by the land emergency services and the border police.
Cochin
The coast guard found signs of an accident on the British oil tanker Orange Victoria which was seized in COCHIN after the accident involving a fishing boat on the coast of Vizhinjam The Fort Kochi Coastal Police and the Marine Mercantile Division conducted an inspection of the ship anchored in the open sea on Saturday morning .The paint on this part has been collected by scientific experts for scientific examination . Captain Nikhil told the Coastal Police that they were not aware that the ship had collided with the boat . There are 23 sailors on board . The ship while en route from Singapore to Indian port, presumably struck fiberglass fishing boat 46 nm off COCHIN at night Mar 18. boat was damaged, all 6 crew safe. Hull paint samples are taken, to conduct lab analysis
HNLMS KAREL DOORMAN
The Zr.Ms. 'Karel Doorman' was stranded in the Mediterranean Sea with technical problems, on the way to the Red Sea. According to the ministry, there were problems with 'one of the weapon systems. A source reported that was is a defect in two of the automatic rapid-fire cannons, the so-called Goalkeepers. These are needed to destroy incoming missiles. A technical team has been flown in to solve the problem. The ship had left Den Helder for the operations area on April 21, 2024, fully operational. After the Zr.Ms. 'Karel Doorman' has completed the necessary tests, the ship will sail to the operating area as quickly as possible.
THUNDER
On May 9 2024, at noon, the Port Authority of Paros was informed that the 'Thunder', during the docking process at the port of Parikia, Paros, suffered a malfunction of the ramp, resulting in the inability to disembark and embark passengers and vehicles. The ship came from the port of Ios on a scheduled route to the ports of Mykonos, Syros and Piraeus. With the care of the ship-owning company, the ramp was disengaged with the assistance of a heavy-duty vehicle, and then the safe disembarkation of the passengers and vehicles was completed. On board were 259 passengers and 35 crew members. The disembarked passengers and vehicles destined for the ports of Mykonos and Syros were transferred to the 'Super Express' in order to be forwarded to their final destinations. The Port Authority of Paros banned the 'Thunder' from sailing. After the presentation of a certificate of class maintenance by the monitoring classification society, the departure was granted for a single voyage the port of Piraeus with 237 passengers on board.
Chittagong
Crew change have resumed at the port of Chittagong, albeit to a limited extent. In case of joining, covid negative certificate is required. In case of sign off, the crew will have to undergo a covid test at a local government approved hospital. Which takes a total of 3 days to stay in a hotel. Then he has to show immigration and airlines authorities when he gets on the plane. We've learned from talking to a crew service provider that this process is safe for all parties. NC Shipping's operations manager said Chittagong port service is now much more efficient and less time consuming. All rules are governed by international standards. "Even in the covid pandemic lockdown, we get international quality service from Chittagong port which has played a positive role in the operation of our ships and maintaining the dynamism of the maritime trade," he added. He thinks crew change approval is part of a continuous process. This is a valiant decision of the government and port authorities