Severe, unforecasted winds caused the 'CMA CGM Bianca' to break away from the pier and damaging equipment at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal in New Orleans on Aug 2, 2020, according to the National Transportation Safety Board’s Marine Accident Brief 21/18. During cargo operations of the ship, a sudden, localized thunderstorm passed through the area. Ten of the vessel’s 16 mooring lines parted in the high winds, and the ship moved away from the pier. Containers lifted by shoreside gantry cranes struck the ship. One damaged container dropped into the water, spilling a cargo of plastic pellets, known as nurdles. A crane operator suffered a minor injury. Damages totaled about $15.1 million. The ship was equipped with self-tensioning-capable mooring winches that, when engaged, heaved in or paid out line to maintain line tension between a set range. The auto-tensioning devices on the mooring line winches were not engaged because, according to the master, the river current in the Mississippi River and wash from passing vessels could trigger unwanted payout, resulting in slack lines. Instead, the mooring winches were secured by their brakes, and the lines were inspected by the crew during regular rounds to ensure adequate tension. At 1:50 p.m., security cameras at the terminal recorded rain beginning to fall. Ten minutes later, gale force winds and strong rain hit the 'CMA CGM Bianca'. The master described the conditions as a form of a tornado, and both crane operators stated that the winds developed in seconds. At 2:02 p.m., seven forward mooring lines and three aft mooring lines parted, and the ship moved away from the pier. At about the same time, Cranes 5 and 6, both with containers suspended from their spreaders, began moving along their rails as they were buffeted by the wind. The container suspended from Crane 5 hit other containers stowed on the ship and then fell from the ship, still connected to the spreader, hitting the pier and breaking open before falling in the water. Part of the container’s cargo of plastic pellets, was discharged into the river. Millions of the pellets floated downriver, washing up on the river banks or out into the Gulf of Mexico. Investigators determined the probable cause of the accident to be the sudden onset of unforecasted severe winds likely originating from the outflow of a thunderstorm-generated downburst. Marine Accident Brief 21/18 is available online at https://go.usa.gov/xMBKr.
News
BITUMA
The 'Bituma', en route from Purfleet to Rotterdam, suffered technical issues with its engine and stopped in position 51 27 26N, 001 47 53E, about 15,8 nautical miles from Ramsgate on Oct 12, 2021, at 7.30 p.m. Engineer checks diagnosed issues with the fuel pump. On Oct 13 at 7.40 p.m. the ship moored at Margate Anchorage. The crew was awaiting spare parts to finish temporary repairs which were to be brought from the Netherlands by an agent. As of Oct 14, the tanker remained stationary in pos. 51° 25.32' N 001° 25.70' E.
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."
PERMATA LESTARI II
The 'Permata Lestari 2' has been inspected and was found to have been damaged. A joint team from the Denpasar Coastal and Marine Resources Management Centre Pokmaswas Petrando and the West Nusa Tenggara Diving Community took aerial photos of the grounding site, while divers noticed that approximately 38 x 50 metres of coral reef were damaged with fragments of the vessel's hull scattered around coral fragments. The tip of the vessel's propeller was also bent. Local authorities were investigating the incident.
LUDOGORETS
A 47 year old Bulgarian deckhand of the 'Ludogorets' fell 14 meters deep into a cargo hold and died on the spot while the ship was berthed in Samsun on Oct 12, 2021. The police launched an investigation and found the circumstances of the accident suspicious. The bulk carrier with a cargo of copper had arrived in port, coming from Bourgas, on Oct 9. It sailed again on Oct 13 at 4.10 p.m., headed to Poti with an ETA as of Oct 14.
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.
Itaqui
Surging demand for imported diesel and the limited number of Medium Range (MR) vessels available between the US and Brazil has spurred demand for Long Range (LR) tankers over the last two months, as buyers working with narrow margins gravitate towards optimal price conditions. Brazilian clean fuels buyers typically contract MRs — vessels with around 37,000-38,000t capacity — rather than LRs, which have around 60,000t capacity. This is due to smaller cargo needs and port limitations, particularly in Brazil's northeast, where there is less infrastructure to receive full LR vessels. This regularly prompts importers to offload part of LR cargoes in ports capable to accommodate tankers with a large draught, such as Itaqui and Santos, before berthing in other destinations. Since the week ending 21 August the difference on the Worldscale benchmark between LR and MR vessels has been around 45 points, according to a Brazilian clean fuels trader. "When the [Worldscale] difference between MR and LR vessels is greater than 19, the LR is more worthwhile, even if it requires an additional discharge port" he told Argus. So far this month, at least two LR vessels — the Stena Primorsk and the Starling — have arrived in Brazil carrying around 152mn l (956,000 bl) of foreign diesel destined for the southeast, according to data from Vortexa. In July, around 119mn l of diesel was imported to the northeast and southeast on the LR BW Lena and the Stena Performance. LR imports in July and August so far totaled 271mn l, compared with a total of 465mn l during the first half of 2020. MRs availability may return soon The increase in LR vessels between July and August could slow by the end of August, when availability of sought-after MR tankers off the US Gulf coast is expected to increase. Tropical storm Marco and Hurricane Laura, which kept the US on alert all of last week, caused ship cancellations and could ease the current shortage of Brazil-bound MR tankers, a shipbroker told Argus. Most port operations had normalized in the US Gulf coast by the afternoon of 27 August. This should increase the supply of MR vessels to Brazil, according to the broker. A drop in MR freight rates last week is already supporting demand for the tanker category. After reaching Worldscale (WS) 165 on 19 August, the highest level for the month, Argus assessed the US Gulf coast-east coast South America clean medium range tanker rate at WS130 on 27 August. Clean freight from the US Gulf coast to Brazil's south and southeastern ports dropped 21pc in outright price to $21.91/t over the same period. The downward trend is expected to extend at least through the first ten days of September, when the number of MR vessels available in the US Gulf region is expected to increase significantly. The surge in LR arrivals echoes a similar trend from August last year, when affordable rates and tight margins among importers spurred demand for larger vessels. By Gabrielle Moreira
CORUISK
The 'Coruisk' suffered a technical issue with the propulsion system while departing from Craignure on Oct 12, 2021. The vessel had to cancel a few services from the port to Oban to investigate the fault. The vessel returned to service after repairs in the afternoon of Oct 12.
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
