On March 30, 2024, the CROSS Gris-Nez was informed that several migrant boats were in difficulty in the Strait of Pas-de-Calais and depolyged the 'Armoise,' to assist a boat off the coast of Bray Dunes in the morning. The crew of the 'Armoise' noticed that the boat had an engine damage and picked up the 55 people who were dropped off at the dock at the port of Dunkirk, where they were taken care of. In the morning, another boat was reported in difficulty off the coast of Marck. The CROSS then deployed the 'Flamant' of the French Navy which took care of 20 people. The rest of the people on the boat refused the assistance offered by French means. Given the risks incurred by migrants in the event of restrictive actions to force them to board State rescue resources such as falling overboard, thermal shock and various trauma, it was decided to let them continue their voyage. The rescued castaways were disembarked in Calais, where they were taken care of by land teams. The 'Flamant' monitored the boat on its way. The police boat 'Eulimene' was tasked to assist another boat with three migrants on board. The crew of the speedboat picked up the three people and took care of them.
News
GUARDAMAR CALIOPE
On April 1 at 3:10 a.m. the 'Guardamar Calíope' arrived in Arguineguín with two people rescued from a wooden boat 85 nautical miles south of Gran Canaria. The LNG tanker 'Al Ruwais' (IMO: 9337951), en route from Ras Laffan to Marsaxxlokk, had located the canoe and notified the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas, which mobilized the SAR boat to assist. Photo: https://twitter.com/salvamentogob/status/1774685722672308241
Piraeus
A press report, dated Jul 3, states: The 24-hour strike by seamen on Jul 3, has left Greek ferries and other passenger boats tied up in port, stranding tourists and Greeks heading for vacation and leaving many islands cut off for the day. The PNO seamen?s union called Wednesday?s strike to demand salary increases as part of collective wage agreements. Dozens of inhabited Greek islands don?t have airports and are accessible only by sea. The passenger shipping business association SEEN, with which the seamen?s union had been negotiating, had expressed surprise when the strike was announced in late June, saying it offered a two percent wage increase for 2019 on top of a retroactive two percent increase for 2018. It said the offer, along with staff increases, was ?beyond our actual capabilities during a particularly difficult time? with 50% fuel cost increases.
RYOUYOUMARU
On March 31, 2024, at around 4:00 a.m. the "Ryoyo Maru" ran agorund and was breached in shallow water off the coast of Ainan Town in the southern Ehime Prefecture, causing its engine room to get flooded and becoming unnavigable. The Japan Coast Guard sent a patrol boat to the scene to rescue the crew. There were no injuries to the crew, and no oil spills have been confirmed so far. The ship was in danger of sinking due to the flooding, and it was investigated whehter it could be towed by tugs or intentionally run aground. Report with illustration: https://crane1000.com/cargo-ship-ryouyou-maru-collides-with-shallow-water-off-the-coast-of-ainan-town-engine-room-floods-and-navigation-becomes-impossible/#google_vignette
DALI
Two large floating cranes lifted the first free-cut parts of the Francis Scott Key Bridge onto a barge on March 31 on the morning. A 200-ton bridge piece from Span 19 was cut off and then towed to a quay where another crane lifted the parts off. Experts estimated that it will be weeks before so much of the collapsed bridge has been removed that an alternative sailing route can be established, where especially important ships can pass with caution. The port of Baltimore is an important hub for American imports and exports, and many jobs depend on the port's functioning. Only when the bridge beams have been removed, it will it be possible to tow the 'Dali' away from the accident site. Report with photo: https://www.yahoo.com/news/workers-remove-first-piece-key-204800791.html
Tanger-Med
APM Terminals second terminal in Morocco, MedPort Tangier was inaugurated this week. Part of the Tanger Med Port complex, it has an annual capacity of 5 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalents). With this new capacity, Morocco is establishing itself as one of the most important transhipment locations in the world. Tanger Med Port is already ranked as the leading African port and is amongst the world’s top 50 container ports due to its prime location along key trade lanes and increasing cargo flows, to and from Africa. The construction of the state-of-the-art APM Terminals MedPort Tangier facility took two years and a total investment of USD 800m. This new transhipment terminal is designed, constructed and operated by APM Terminals, and will join existing hub facilities servicing Maersk and its partners. Built utilizing the latest technology, the terminal is set to be one of the most efficient and safest in the world.
Port Hedland
Thirty-eight vessels at anchor off Port Hedland, waiting to load iron ore.
ANE MAERSK
The 'Ane Maersk', the world's first large methanol powered container m/v made a maiden call at Port of Hamburg, en route from Felixstowe, on March 28, 2024, t 6.20 a.m. UTC. The vessel had started its maiden voyage from the Port of Colombo and is calling at a series of European ports, including Felixstowe, Hamburg, Antwerp, London, and Le Havre. The ship is running on green methanol and emits two-thirds less greenhouse gases than fossil fuels. It is equipped with dual fuel technology and can also run on Ultra-low sulfur fuel (ULSFO) or bio-diesel. The ship sailed again on March 30 at 8.15 a.m. and reached Antwerp as next port on April 1.
Point Samson
Nine vessels at anchor off Port Walcott, waiting to load iron ore
Cancun
Two identical 37-metre, 459-passenger catamarans have been completed by Wight Shipyard Co (WSC). The Incat Crowther-designed vessels will be transported to Cancun, Mexico, for Ultramar early next month.