RDJ WAALSTROOM
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Detention after salvage
After the fire in the engine room, the 'RDJ Waalstroom' was detained in Cherbourg following a Port State Control inspection on April 15. The inspectors found with a total of four deficiencies, one of which was being regarded as seriously and a ground for a detention. The inspection was conducted under the Paris Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) framework. Further actions will be required to address the deficiencies before the vessel could be released.
Engine failure in English Channel
On April 8 2026, at 09:50 p.m., the 'RDJ Waalstroom', enroute from Dunkirk to Bilbao with six crew members on board, reported a fire in the engine room, prompting the crew to evacuate the space and activate the vessel’s fire suppression system, while transiting the English Channel. While the fire was brought under control, one crew member was injured and needed to be medevaced. As the ship was then located in a British SAR Region (SRR), the MRCC in Falmouth coordinated the evacuation of one of the crew member approximately 40 nautical miles south of Salcombe, Devon. The RNLI’s all-weather lifeboat from Salcombe was launched shortly after at about 10:00 p.m. and remained at the scene to assist during the rescue operation. A Dutch warship also responded to the incident and stayed nearby to provide support. A Coastguard rescue helicopter dropped off a paramedic who provided initial medical care. The injured seaman was winched aboard the helicopter and flown to a hospital in Portsmouth. The RLNI-boat was stood down and was back in port on April 9 at 3.30 a.m. The ship, rendered unmaneuverable by the fire, drifted into the French SRR on April 9 at around 01:00 a.m. .Under the coordination of the Maritime Prefect for the English Channel and North Sea, the operation to assist the vessel in distress was taken over by the CROSS Jobourg, which deployed the French Navy's H160 Belligou helicopter based in Lanvéoc with an assessment team from Brest on board, and the emergency tug 'Abeille Liberté' (IMO: 9308699), based in Cherbourg, with an intervention team composed of firefighters from the Cherbourg Naval Fire and Rescue Service (SISM). Once the situation was under control on board, the vessel was taken in tow by the 'Abeille Liberté' and pulled to the port of Cherbourg, where it remained stationary as of April 15. Reports with photos and video: https://www.premar-manche.gouv.fr/communiques-presse/assistance-a-navire-en-difficulte-dans-la-manche https://www.marineinsight.com/watch-rnli-and-coastguard-airlift-injured-seafarer-after-cargo-ship-fire-in-english-channel/ https://www.tendanceouest.com/actualite-438079-mer-un-incendie-se-produit-a-bord-d-un-navire-des-secours-mobilises-au-royaume-uni-a-cherbourg-et-en-bretagne
Cargo ship underway as ghost ship
The Dutch maritime police was investigating an incident with the 'Leiria' in the night of Nov 24, 2019, on the North Sea which sailed an unusual route, did not respond to calls from the Coastguard nor to light and signal signals from passing ships. The KNRM team from IJmuiden and the lifeboat 'Donator' received a GMDSS alert as well as an SAR helicopter. Upon arrival of the the helicopter, after a while there wasa movement on board and contact could finally be made with the ship, after which both lifeboats could be stood down at 4.30 a.m. Without intervention from the Coast Guard this could have turned out very different. The Coast Guard is investigating what happened and why it was so difficult to get in touch with the ship which was coming from Riga and berthed in Kingston-upon-Hull on Nov 27 at 6.15 a.m. Dutch report with photos: https://nieuwsbladijmuiden.nl/lokaal/overig/onderzoek-naar-spookschip-op-noordzee-663324
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