On Sep 19, 96 migrants were rescued by the crew of the 'Geo Barents' from an overcrowded wooden boat in the Central Mediterranean. Many were women and children, the majority travelling alone. They were all safe on board the NGO ship. This rescue was possible thanks to the alert and aerial support from Seawatch. In the rund of the afternoon of Sep 19, 109 more people were rescued from a second overcrowded wooden boat in the Mediterranean. They were fleeing Libya. During the rescue, a boat from the Libyan Coast Guard approached the scene and conducted dangerous maneuvers. The boat eventually left, and all survivors were brought aboard the 'Geo Barents'. With 205 people on board, the ship heading towards Genoa, which has been designated as a place of safety by the Italian authorities. Photos: https://x.com/MSF_Sea/status/1836761102165705041 https://x.com/MSF_Sea/status/1836822789359067194
News
BENUA 999
On Sep 18, 2024, the cargo m/v KM 'Tirta Samudra XXXV' ( (IMO: 9738296) was in collision with the KM 'Benua 999' in the Karang Jamuang Island area inside the West Surabaya Shipping Lane (APBS). The patrol vessel KN 'P.329' of the Tanjung Perak Sea and Coast Guard Base was deployed to the scene and carried out monitoring and Inspection of the ships involved. The 'Tirta Samudra XXXV' suffered damage to the port side bridge and also the port side stern. Video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DADvnvZSR2N/
Toulon
More than 1,000 sailors aboard the aircraft carrier 'Charles de Gaulle' have tested positive for COVID-19, a number that could continue to surge as the crew awaits approximately 930 more test results. The outbreak onboard the French navy’s flagship forced leadership to call off the remaining two weeks of the carrier’s scheduled deployment to the North Atlantic. The ship, which carries a crew of nearly 1,800, pulled into port last week at Toulon Naval Base in southern France. In all, 1,081 crew members from the Charles de Gaulle naval group have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. That total comes almost entirely from the carrier, and includes at least two U.S. sailors who were assigned to the ship as part of the U.S. Navy’s Personnel Exchange Program. The American sailors have since been removed from the ship and were receiving excellent host nation medical care at French facilities. The declining health of one French sailor, meanwhile, necessitated a transfer to the intensive care unit. Partially complicating the early detection process onboard the 'Charles de Gaulle' was the rate of asymptomatic carriers. Of the confirmed cases, nearly half showed no symptoms. Additionally, masks were not made available until late in the ship’s deployment. T The debilitating spread of the virus onboard France’s lone carrier, has sparked concern about the nation’s ability to remain ready to fight. Unlike the U.S. Navy, which touts 10 other active carriers in addition to the coronavirus-stricken USS 'Theodore Roosevelt', losing the 'Charles de Gaulle' for an extended period could cripple France’s nuclear deterrence capabilities.
Turku
On March 31, 2020, around 9 a.m. a fire broke out aboard the new built Panama flagged cruise ship 'Mardi Gras', 183200 gt (9837444), which is currently built at the Meyer yard in Turku. The fire occurred in a cabin on the upper deck, and fire crews managed to limit the fire to one cabin. In total, 18 fire brigade units were sent from the rescue service to the shipyard, but the fire could quickly be extinguished by the shipyard's own fire department. However, the ship must be checked to make sure there were no remaining hot spots. All workers were evacuated from the ship, but no one was injured in the fire. The cause of the fire was still unclear.
TIRTA SAMUDRA 35
On Sep 18, 2024, the KM 'Tirta Samudra XXXV' was in collision with the KM 'Benua 999' (IMO: 8597712) in the Karang Jamuang Island area inside the West Surabaya Shipping Lane (APBS). The patrol vessel KN 'P.329' of the Tanjung Perak Sea and Coast Guard Base was deployed to the scene and carried out monitoring and Inspection of the ships involved. The 'Tirta Samudra XXXV' suffered damage to the port side bridge and also the port side stern. Video: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DADvnvZSR2N/
Galveston
The US Coast Guard medevaced a crewmember from a 600-foot tanker at anchorage approximately 15 miles southeast of Galveston, Texas, on April 19, 2020. Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston watchstanders received a report of a 58-year-old man reportedly experiencing symptoms of an upper respiratory illness. Watchstanders consulted with the duty flight surgeon as well as local CDC and county health partners who recommended the medevac. Watchstanders launched a Coast Guard Station Galveston 45-foot Response Boat-Medium boat crew. The RB-M boat crew transferred the patient to awaiting emergency medical services personnel at Station Galveston who transported him to the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.
Turku
On March 31, 2020, around 9 a.m. a fire broke out aboard the new built Panama flagged cruise ship 'Mardi Gras', 183200 gt (9837444), which is currently built at the Åbovarvet Meyer Turku. The fire occurred in a cabin on the upper deck, and fire crews managed to limit the fire to one cabin. In total, 18 fire brigade units were sent from the rescue service to the shipyard, but the fire could quickly be extinguished by the shipyard's own fire department. However, the ship must be checked to make sure there were no remaining hot spots. All workers were evacuated from the ship, but no one was injured in the fire. The cause of the fire was still unclear.
THAILAEMTHONG 8
On Sep 17, 2024, at around 6 a.m. the 'Thai Laemthong 8', with 12 crew members on board, ran aground at Koh Mai Si, off the coast of Koh Kood off the Soneva Kiri Resort in the Trat province. Strong waves had caused an engine failure and disabled the ship, which then drifted ashore. The Koh Kood District Chief and the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Center (Sor Chor Ror) of Trat were working together to assess the damage and provide assistance, after the Trat Marine Security Center (Sor Chor Ror Trat) received a distress call from the captain. The vessel suffered a breach, causing water to flood the engine room. The stormy winds and waves raised concerns about the potential sinking of the tanker and the environmental impact of an oil spill in the Koh Kood area. The heavy seas around Koh Kood initially prevented any rescue boats from reaching the grounded vessel. They eventually arranged for a boat from the nearby Soneva Kiri Resort to approach the 'Thai Laemthong 8'. Two fishing boats and a Navy ship tried to tow the tanker back into open waters. However, operations were difficult due to the poor weather and swollen waves.' All crew members were then evacuated from the ship. They had earlier pumped out water to keep the tanker from sinking. The ship had made an overnight stop between Koh Mai Si and Koh Kut islands to shelter from a storm on the evvening Sep 16 evening, before its engine died the following morning. There were no reports of oil leakage as the tanker, which had been transporting fuel from the Rayong province, had delivered it to fishing boats operating in Trat’s border waters, and was en route back to Rayong. Report with photos and video: https://www.pattayamail.com/thailandnews/oil-tanker-runs-aground-at-koh-mai-si-off-koh-kood-coast-in-trat-472813 https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/other/oil-tanker-runs-aground-on-rocky-outcrop-amid-storm-in-thailand/vi-AA1qPbbc?ocid=weather-verthp-feeds
Guam
One crew member of the USS 'Theodore Roosevelt' which was being anchored off Guam has died of a corona virus infection on April 14, 2020. The woman had been in intensive care but died of health complications. More than 550 crew members of the 5.000 crew members were tested positive. The ship has been largely evacuated during the recent days. Commander Brett Crozier had been fired as he wrote a letter expressing his concern about the crew situation and asked for help by the Navy.
Cape Town
A 52-year old Cape Town truck driver was killed on March 20, 2020, when the spreader from a Transnet Port Terminal crane collapsed and crushed his truck cab inside the container terminal. The accident occurred around 11h00 on Friday morning when the truck arrived to collect a container at the TPT terminal. The reach stacker crane passed over the truck when the spreader bar was dislodged and fell onto the cab of the truck. The reason why the spreader fell was not clear but one witness claimed that the crane involved in the accident had been receiving attention from a technician shortly beforehand. Immediately following the accident the crane operator attempted to hoist the spreader off the truck but was unsuccessful. The driver of the truck was trapped in his cab and died at the scene despite the efforts of Transnet paramedics who were quickly on the scene. Following the accident the South African Police Services opened an inquest docket for further investigation. Operations remained suspended for some hours until all regulatory authorities currently onsite, concluded their assessments. The maintenance of the Kalmar equipment at the port was recently taken over by Transnet.