Almost ten months after the fire aboard the"Tenacia," owned by Isabella Grimaldi's Grimaldi Investments, is back at the disposal of its charterer, GNV, and will return to service next summer. The ship has been repaired and modernized in the affected areas at the Nuova Meccanica Navale shipyard in Naples, in which MSC holds a shareholding. The fire broke out in the engine room on July 8, 2023, while the ferry was sailing north of Ibiza.
News
QUEEN OF COQUITLAM
The 'Queen of Coquitlam' had to be assisted into Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver by the tug 'Ospresy' (IMO: 9623128) after suffering a mechanical failure on April 21, 2025, at 1 p.m., a short distance from the Langdale Terminal. The operation took 40 minutes. The breakdown led to disruptions on the busy Langdale-Horseshoe Bay route and stranded passengers for approximately three hours as it resulted in the cancellation of multiple sailings.The passengers and vehicles were off-loaded around 3:30 p.m. BC Ferries reported that the pitch control issue had been repaired by 2:20 p.m. The vessel was to undergo sea trials with the assistance of a tug, while awaiting final clearance from Transport Canada to resume service. The company aimed to restart sailings with the 4:20 p.m. departure from Horseshoe Bay to Langdale- The ferry company hired three 12-person-water taxis to shuttle travellers who were booked on other sailings. Two round-trip sailings of the ferry between Langdale on the Sunshine Coast and Horseshoe Bay had to be cancelled. Report with photo and video: https://www.msn.com/en-in/travel/news/easter-monday-ferry-fiasco-aging-vessel-breaks-down-between-sunshine-coast-and-vancouver-passengers-stranded/ar-AA1DnR5V https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypd1lARwBbI
VIKING POLARIS
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported a gastrointestinal illness outbreak aboard the 'Viking Polaris' during the voyage from April 11 to April 23, 2025. Out of 355 passengers, 28 reported symptoms consistent with acute gastroenteritis, including vomiting and diarrhea. Additionally, four crew members out of 260 were affected. The causative agent of the outbreak has not yet been identified, and stool specimens are being collected for testing. In response to the outbreak, Viking Expeditions implemented enhanced cleaning and disinfection protocols, isolated affected individuals, and consulted with the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) regarding sanitation procedures and illness reporting. The VSP is remotely monitoring the situation, including reviewing the ship's outbreak response and sanitation measures. The 'Viking Polaris' was scheduled to arrive in New York on April 23, concluding the 12-day voyage through Canada.
WAN XIANG 699
The death toll of the sinking of the 'Hoing Hai 16' hjas risen to nine, while two others were still missing. The local government of Rizal town in Occidental Mindoro confirmed the number of fatalities on April 20, after one more body was recovered at 9:11 a.m. in the vessel's accommodation area. The identity of the victim has not been disclosed. One body was recovered from the wreck earlier the same day, one more on the afternoon of April 19. The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), in coordination with partner agencies, recovered two more bodies on the afternoon of April 18 during the search, The dredging company Bluemax Tradelink Inc., said it will comply with the cease and desist order that will be issued by the provincial government of Occidental Mindoro. The company has all the necessary permits for the dredging operation, which is one of the ways to ease flooding in the area. The area had been dredged by different vessels three to four times before the 'Hong Hai' 16 arrived.
Kiel
The PORT OF KIEL has redesigned the port apron in Ostuferhafen, which is the freight and logistics centre on the fjord. Where once stood a grain silo, there is now an expanded pre-stacking and stand-by area of three hectares for trucks, trailers and pas-senger cars.The State Premier of Schleswig- Holstein, Daniel Günther, visited the Ostufer-hafen on 12th August to hand over the grant notice coming from the State Programme Economy for 5.44 million Euros: The project to redesign the port apron included dismantling three hall areas of the former grain silo, excavation and road works as well as drainage, lighting and security measures and the connection of the area to the infrastructure. Through the new and generous port apron it has been possible to merge formerly separated pre-stacking areas, shorten distances and gain more space for trucks, busses, trailers and passenger cars. Furthermore, IT solutions have been developed to accelerate the handling processes at the gate, which also allow truck drivers to reduce personal contact.Dr Dirk Claus, Managing Director at the PORT OF KIEL: “Even under the current circumstances the Ostuferhafen operates in a reliable and safe way. The port of Kiel has proven its systemic importance regarding the transshipment of cross-border freight transport.”In the first seven months of the year 2.1 million tons of cargo have been tran-shipped via the Ostuferhafen (+ 1 %). Additional volumes have been transported by the ferries of the DFDS shipping company to the Baltic States or they have been delivered by the SCA-RoRo-freighters from Scandinavia. Not only general cargo and forest products are unloaded resp. transhipped in Ostuferhafen but also project and heavy cargo, scrap metal and agricul-tural products. The integrated passenger terminal to handle cruise vessels emphasizes the universal character of this port part.
ARATERE
Two scheduled sailings of the 'Aratere' have been cancelled due to an electrical fault on April 22, 2024. The 4 p.m. crossing from Wellington to Picton and the return journey scheduled for 8.50 p.m. ave been cancelled to give engineers time to fix the fault in a hydraulic pump. Affected passengers were being moved to the next sailings, which have space available.
GIOVANNI VENTURI
On April 18, 2025, a 42-year-old crew member of the 'Giovanni Venturi' was medevaed by helicopter in the Punta Indio Channel of the Río de la Plata, after collapsing, hitting his head, and beginning to experience seizures. The rescue operation was coordinated by the Argentine Naval Prefecture, which deployed a helicopter and an airplane from the Mar del Plata Air Station to assist the victim. The incident occurred more than 100 kilometers from the city of La Plata when the ship's captain requested immediate assistance due to the serious medical condition of the victim, who was showing signs of possible respiratory arrest. The crew performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), stabilizing him while a radio consultation was established with the air force's medical team. Given the severity of the condition, the medical evacuation protocol was activated, and an aircraft with specialized personnel and a doctor on board was dispatched to the scene. The patient was lifted into a medical basket and transported by helicopter to land. During the flight, the man received initial medical attention, and upon landing at Buenos Aires Air Station, he was taken by ambulance to a medical center for further treatment. Report with phot and video: https://pescare.com.ar/prefectura-aeroevacuo-tripulante-descompensado-en-un-buque-frente-a-la-costa-bonaerense/
Beirut
The Port of Beirut (PoB) resumed partial operations on Aug 10 with the first two container ships berthing in the container terminal after the explosion which killed at least 160 persons, injured thousands and made hundred thousands homeless. Out of 16 cranes at the container terminal, 12 were currently operational. The port was gradually resuming operations to ensure the supply of all kinds of goods to citizens. Bassem Al Kaissi, the new Director of the PoB, said that the container terminal will be fully operational by Aug 14. Al Kaissi said that 420 containers were unloaded on Aug 10. The container terminal storage area has been cleaned up and restored to its state before the blast. The container terminal represents 80 percent of the overall cargo movement at the PoB. It is located one kilometer away from the blast epicenter. Container vessels can dock at quay number 16. Shipping movement at the PoB had already plunged by 75 percent due to the economic crisis and has reached 15 percent following the blast. Customs have opened offices in the PoB’s warehouse number 14 which was partially damaged. The customs have become able to carry out the inspection of merchandise- Customs duties are being temporarily paid at the Rafic Hariri International Airport. Tthe PoB is now handling only full containers as groupage consignment requires warehouses which don’t exist now. Amer Al Kaissi said groupage, which represents 15 percent of shipments at the PoB, will be diverted to the Port of Tripoli until the rebuilding of warehouses at the PoB is completed. The first two containerships to berth at the PoB after the blast were the 'Electra' (Gezairi Transport) and the 'Nicolas Delmas' (CMA CGM). The 'Electra', which was carrying 400 containers, was diverted to Tripoli where there was a license to operate but the company insisted to unload it in Beirut when it was told that the PoB has resumed operation. The CMA CGM Group and CEVA Logistics said they are fully operational and ensuring business continuity to serve their customers. The Group has redeployed its employees in its two back-up sites in Beirut Digital District and reinforced its presence in Tripoli. Part of CMA CGM’s vessels has been temporarily directed to Tripoli. Few shipping companies are authorized to operate in other ports such as Tripoli or Saida. BCTC, the Customs and the PoB’s authorities did their best to handle the clearing formalities despite the difficult working conditions. The general cargo area was fully operational on Aug 12 both for imports and exports. This includes wheat and other grains as well as construction steel bars. The cost of rebuilding the port is estimated at around $1 billion.