On July 28, the 'Moby Drea' has arrived at Brodosplit in Split en route from Genoa, and after 350 tons of asbestos found in the passenger cabin partition walls have been removed, it will sail towards a repair shipyard in Greece. During the removal of the passenger cabin partition walls from the ferry, the employees will have to work under strict conditions, almost like in quarantine. Every day, they will put on special disposable suits, special masks and gloves, and before they even begin the demanding and potentially dangerous work, as well as during the work, the concentration of hazardous particles will be measured. The panels are filled with asbestos, which amounts to about 350 tons. Afterthe removal, the panels will be wrapped in special foil and stacked on pallets, and then an authorized company will transport them by truck. They will be stored in special cassettes, or concrete boxes, after collection. The work in the shipyard will last two months.
News
CARNIVAL DREAM
The FBI is investigating the death case onboard the 'Carnival Dream', which happened around July 23 in the area of Belize City during a 6-day Western Caribbean voyage. It returned to Galveston, Texas, on July 26. An FBI maritime liaison agent, based out of the Texas City resident agency, was coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection, and the cruise line regarding the incident as a standard practice for the FBI to review deaths that occur on cruise ships. The routine protocol ensures transparency. It does not automatically imply suspicious circumstances, and the facts of this matter did not suggest any such activity. The FBI is the primary federal agency authorized to investigate potential crimes on the high seas.
Vladivostok
The typhoon Maysak crushed onto the port of Vladivostok on Sep 3, 2020, wreaking havoc at the Navy base and in the commercial port. A floating dock in the base broke off her moorings, drifted along the piers and hit berthed submarines and other ships. The amount of damage was yet unknown. The container terminal at the ommercial port was flooded. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=50&v=Yr8JHgunKNY&feature=emb_title
ANKA
The National Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) has taken control of the 'Anka', which entered the port of the temporarily occupied Crimea in violation of Ukrainian law. The ship was handed over to the ARMA for further sale by a decision of the investigating judge on the basis of a petition filed by the SBU Main Directorate in the AR of Crimea within the framework of criminal proceedings on illegal entry into the temporarily occupied territory. The vessel belonged to Russia's shadow fleet. At the end of 2024, it transported 5,000 tons of wheat from the port of Sevastopol, which was stolen in the temporarily occupied territory of southern Ukraine. The 'Anka' is owned by the Fab Petrol Doo, a company registered in Montenegro. The vessel is worth $420,000. Specialists from ARMA's Southern MTU conducted a technical inspection of the vessel, which confirmed that the asset was in good technical condition and ready for further use. Currently, the Interregional Department is collecting all the necessary information about the asset to form a high-quality tender offer.
NEWNEW POLAR BEAR
Two years after damaging the Balticconnector pipeline and communication cables in the Gulf of Finland, the 'Newnew Polar Bear' has set sail for the Arctic again. Ot received a permit for Russia’s Northern Sea Route on July 22 and is currently heading north in the Sea of Japan in the direction of the Bering Strait. Russian authorities cleared the vessel to transit the Arctic in both westward and eastward directions between Aug 1 and Oct 31. This will be the vessel’s first return to Europe and the Arctic since the incident. Beijing officials initially had claimed that the dragging of the anchor was an accident caused by severe storm conditions, though meteorological conditions at the time were mild for the Baltic Sea in fall. Investigators and industry experts remained skeptical that the vessel could have accidentally dragged its anchor unnoticed for more than 100 nautical miles. The 'Newnew Polar Bear' incident caused more than $40 million in damages and for months disrupted regional energy and communication infrastructure. A criminal case against the captain Wan Wenguo is currently winding its way through the Chinese court system, with another round of hearings not before September 2025.
Paramaribo
The Maritime Authority of Suriname has issued the following 2 Notices to Mariners: 1. "From September 5, 2020 to January 6, 2021, the Noble Sam Croft drillship will conduct exploration drillings off the coast of Suriname at the drilling location 07 ° 23 "401 N - 55 ° 55" 264 W (WGS 84). For safety reasons the shipping should keep a safe distance of 1000 (one thousand) metres from thenNoble Sam Croft. The Offshore Support Vessels (OSV) that will assist during the operations are: Southern Tide, States Tide and Polaris. Please note: • Communication is through VHF, all international channels 13, 16, 69, 72. • There is a SAFETY ZONE of 1000 (one thousand) metres from the drilling site. • The Noble Sam Croft is not maneuverable and will display the relevant characters. All ships should take notice of the above mentioned." 2. "The drillship Maersk Developer will conduct exploration drilling of the Coast of Suriname from September 19th till December 3rd, 2020 at the drilling location 07° 21’.270 N – 055° 33’.247 W (WGS 84). For safety reasons vessels should keep a safe distance of 1000 (one thousand) meters from the drillship. The Offshore Support Vessels (OSV) that will assist during the operations are MV Bourbon Topaz, MV Gerard Tide, MV Felton Tide and MV National Energy Explorer. Please note: • Communication is through the VHF channels 16 and 77. • There is a SAFETY ZONE of 1000 (one thousand) meters from the drilling site. • Maersk Developer is not maneuverable and will display the relevant characters. All ships should take notice of the above mentioned."
MSC ELSA 3
Citizen groups, including Greenpeace India, along with environmental groups, legal experts and fishermen bodies have called for an urgent and enforceable action by the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) regarding the sinking of the 'MSC Elsa 3'. In a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram on July 28, the citizen groups released a comprehensive white paper outlining the potential ecological and socio-economic impacts of the shipwreck. They demanded that the company be held fully accountable. The MSC company has denied its responsibility and refused to pay I9,531 crore compensation demanded by the state government and they claimed that there was no significant ecological damage from the shipwreck. The document also outlined the severe livelihood disruptions for fisherfolk, and growing concerns over marine biodiversity. The citizens groups demanded that the company support an independent environmental and social impact assessment and roll out a comprehensive compensation package that reflects the magnitude of the damage. The shipwreck has significantly affected over 10 lakh fisherfolk in Kerala, especially in the wake of early monsoon weather restrictions and the 20-nautical-mile fishing ban period following the accident, with serious consequences on daily income, food security, and occupational health.
NAVAL AUXILIARY A135
The RFA 'Argus' is currently stuck at the Portsmouth naval base and was banned from sailing until a number of identified defects have been rectified. The 'Argus' arrived in the Navy’s port on JKune 8, 2025, and cannot sail to Falmouth in Cornwall for repairs because her safety certification has been withdrawn. The vessel failed to meet minimum safety standards following an inspection by the Maritime and Coastguard agency and Lloyd’s surveyors.
Beirut
The Lebanese army on Sep 3 found a further 4.35 tonnes of the explosive ammonium nitrate a month after 2,750 tonnes of the substance exploded in the harbour and destroyed large parts of the city. The explosive substance was found in a warehouse immediately outside one of the entrances to the port, and engineers from the army took care of it. Simultaneously with the new discovery, it emerged that the outgoing Prime Minister Hassan Diab told the head of the investigation of the catastrophic explosion that he knew of the existence of the large amount of ammonium nitrate at the port before the explosion. 25 suspects have been arrested so far, including the port's chief of staff Hassan Koraytem and customs chief Badri Daher. Among the others arrested were also three Syrian workers who carried out welding work at the warehouse, where the huge amount of ammonium nitrate was stored, on the day the explosion took place. Up to 200 were killed and about 6,500 injured in the blast, causing damage to a double-digit billion.
