On April 6, 2024, the 'Megastar' allided with a quay in Helsinki due to strong gusts of wind. The passengers hardly noticed the impact. The ship suffered minor damage. After an inspection, the ferry was allowed to set sail for Tallinn at 3 p.m. with a delay of 1,5 hours. .
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COASTGUARD SHIPVEERA
The ICG 'Veera', while on patrol off the Andhra coast, saved all nine fishermen after their boat caught fire and sunk at sea on April 5, 2024, within six hours. The ship crew received a radio message from a nearby fishing boat about the fire raging onboard the Indian fishing boat 'Durga Bhavani' around 65 nautical miles from Visakhapatnam harbour. The Andhra registered boat had sailed from Kakinada harbour with nine crew members on board on March 26. On April 5, the boat caught fire due to explosion of an LPG cylinder on board. The fishermen jumped into the water to escape, but some suffered severe burns. The fishing boat, damaged due to explosion, sank within a few minutes. The ICGS 'Veera' proceeded at top speed, reaching the location within a few hours to provide assistance to the survivors. All nine survivors were shifted to the ship where they were provided first-aid by a medical team. Meanwhile, Coast Guard District Headquarters No. 6 in coordination with Joint Director of Fisheries Visakhapatnam arranged ambulances along with medical teams to evacuate critically injured to King George Hospital here for further treatment.
Keelung
Hong Kong-based Dream Cruises’ World Dream cruise ship made its first port call to Keelung on July 8 and tourism operators have said that the port could receive a visit by Royal Caribbean International’s new Spectrum of the Seas in 2021. With gross tonnage (GT) of 151,300, the World Dream is the largest ship ever to visit Keelung Port, the Keelung Harbor Bureau said on Sunday, July 21. Tourism operators have said that the 169,379GT Spectrum of the Seas could set a new record if it makes an anticipated port call in 2021.
Chittagong Shipbreakers
Bangladesh has become the top dumping ground for discarded ships in the world with the country dismantling the highest number of vessels in the first half (January-June) of the current year, according to a report of the NGO Shipbreaking Platform, a leading NGO coalition campaigning for clean and safe ship recycling.
DALI
The Unified Command began to remove containers from the 'Dali' at the Key Bridge on April 7 as part of the effort to gain access to the portion of the bridge that lies atop the ship. The transfer of containers from the the 'Dali' will continue in the coming days, as weather permits. In parallel, wreckage and debris removal continued at the site, including portions of Span 19 that were taken to Sparrows Point, Maryland. While marine traffic was still limited, one vessel has transited through in the last 24 hours, totalling 32 since the creation of the temporary alternate channels. Report with video: https://www.keybridgeresponse2024.com/post/update-11-multimedia-release-removal-of-containers-onboard-m-v-dali-commences-at-site-of-key-bridge
HARMONY OF THE SEAS
Eight boat passengers were pulled from the sea after the 'San Pedro' capsized and sank on the afternoon of April 5, 2024, at 3 p.m., a few meters away from the docked 'Harmony of the Seas' on the south side of the island of Cozumel. The boat took on water and capsized, dumping its passengers into the sea. All eight were rescued by other smaller boats in the area. Port authorities were investigating the sinking of the boat. A failed bilge pump was the cause for the eventual sinking. There were no injuries reported. Report with photos: https://riviera-maya-news.com/cozumel-tourist-boat-sinks-next-to-docked-cruise-ship/2024.html?cn-reloaded=1
San Juan
Two more cruise ships bypassed scheduled stops in san Juan as demonstrators have been calling for the resignation of Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló. The loss of tourism is impacting the island's economy. Tourism officials said the two ships would have generated a $1.3 million economic impact. Officials estimated the island missed out on a combined $760,000 from the Seaside and Equinox on Monday
Sines
The Portuguese government announced an investment of 547 million euros in the expansion of the Port of Sines in the southwest of the country and an agreement to extend its concession from 2029 to 2049. The agreement was reached last week between Portugal and PSA Singapore for the completion of the 3rd phase of expansion of Terminal XXI, so as to greatly increase its capacity and give another 20 years of operations in Portugal to PSA Singapore. The Sines port, 58 nautical miles south of Lisbon, is one of the major European ports and the great hub port of the Iberian-Atlantic front.
QUEEN OF COWICHAN
Sailings of the 'Queen of Cowichan' between Metro Vancouver and Nanaimo saw major delays on the morning of April 6, 2024, after a medical emergency forced athe vessel to return to dock in Horseshoe Bay. The 8:25 a.m. sailing from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay on the 'Queen of Cowichan' turned around mid-voyage and returned to the mainland. As of 10:30 a.m. the vessel remained docked in Horseshoe Bay. The 'Queen of Cowichan''s next scheduled voyage was supposed to depart Nanaimo's Departure Bay terminal at 10:40 a.m. with the vessel is now operating 132 minutes late as a result of the earlier emergency.
Napier
Ships could continue to be turned away from Napier Port for the next few days as an "unprecendented" swell hammers Hawke's Bay. Clifton Beach was closed by Hastings District Council on Wednesday and Napier City Council closed the Marine Parade viewing platform after tourists were drenched by a heaving sea on Wednesday morning. MetService meteorologist Tui McInnes said a slow building pressure system out to the east of Hawke's Bay had ramped up the seas, causing swells of close to 4m. McInnes said the 4m swells had the potential to "cause a bit of havoc on the coast" as it could possibly continue until Saturday morning. "The main thing that is causing the big waves is the easterly winds that are occur. "With a large space and a slow build-up it leaves time for some quite nice swells to develop," McInnes said. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12252333
Rotterdam
APM Terminals Maasvlakte II’s new rail service between its Rotterdam terminal and Venlo, a key logistics hub on the Dutch-German border is proving popular. Following the success of the initial five-times-per-week service, plans are already in place to scale this up to 14 times per week over the coming weeks.