The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will convene a public board meeting on April 15 to determine what caused the fire aboard the 'Grande Costa D’Avorio' that claimed the lives of two firefighters in Newark, New Jersey. on July 5, 2023. It had started when a pusher vehicle operated by shoreside workers caught fire while loading cars on an interior garage deck. The situation turned tragic when two land-based firefighters became disoriented in the smoke-filled decks and died. Six additional emergency responders sustained injuries during the response operations. The local fire department responding to the incident had little to no maritime firefighting training, experience, or familiarization with cargo ships of any type, according to preliminary findings from the ongoing Coast Guard investigation.
News
KRISTIN
Already on Dec 26, 2024, the 'Kristin' was detained in Setubal with nine deficiencies, six of which being regarded as seriously and grounds for a detention: 1) Certificate & Doc - Liability for the removal of wrecks certificate Expired 2) Certificate & Doc - Certificate or documentary evidence of financial security relating to shipowners liability Expired 3) Certificate & Doc - Certificate or documentary evidence of financial security for repartriation Expired 4) Certificate & Doc - Civil liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage Certificate Invalid 5) Certificate & Doc - Minimum safe manning doc Invalid 6) Emergency systems - Emergency source of power - emergency generator Not as required The vessel was released again only on April 14, 2025, afte r110 days. The last detention was on March 15, 2024, Papenburg with 27 deficiencies for 25 days. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063576908591
Krishnapatnam
Gautam Adani is looking to expand his ports empire by closing in on buying a 65-70 per cent stake in Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd, the entity promoted by Hyderabad-based CVR Group to run a private deep-water port at Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh’s Nellore district. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), India’s biggest private port operator, is expected to pay more than ₹5,500 crore to buy the stake which will give it access to the country’s largest waterfront area (for a port) of 12.5 km and a transit storage area of 6,800 acres. It started operations in 2008. Currently, the port has a draft of 18.5 metres, a depth that can accommodate full-loaded Capesize vessel of 200,000-tonne capacity.
Shenzhen
Chinese city-gas distributor Shenzhen Gas will launch next week in southern China its first fully-owned terminal to import liquefied natural gas (LNG), a company executive told Reuters on Friday. This will make Shenzhen Gas the second city gas distributor backed by a local government that owns an LNG import facility.
BALTIC
On April 12, 2025, a crew member of the 'Baltic' sustained serious injuries. At around 9 a.m., the tug reported to the MRCC in Bremen, that he had fallen from a height of approximately three to four meters and needed urgently medical attention. The "Baltic" was approximately 7.5 nautical miles of Warnemünde at the time. The lifeboat 'Arkona' of the DGzRS station in Warnemünde set sail immediately, taking a volunteer marine doctor aboard the daughter boat 'Caspar'. Once on scene, the 'Arkona' moored alongside the "Baltic" in westerly winds of force three to four Beaufort. The marine , a sea rescuer trained as a paramedic, and a volunteer sea rescuer trained as a rescue paramedic, embarked onto the tug in moderate sea conditions. They initially stabilized the victim on board the tug and then transferred him to the 'Arkona' on a stretcher. He was transported to Warnemünde, where he was transferred to the shore based rescue service for further transport to hospital.
GLEN SANNOX
On April 14, the 'Glen Sannox', serving on the route Troon-Brodick, suffered a control issue with the passenger lifts with only one lift remaining in operation. This had to be controlled by a crew member. The issue was expected have an effect on the turn around times of the ferry at the port. The issue has not yet been resolved as of April 15.
Walvis Bay
In the morning of Aug 17, 2019, around 7 a.m. a fire broke out aboard the Namibian trawler "Ocean Tide", 296 gt (IMO: 7220839), which was moored at the jetty of the Seaworks Fish Processors. One of the 20 crew members on board, was found dead following the fire. The deceased was identified as 40-year-old Hausiku Mathews Sivambo. It was believed he became trapped inside the vessel and burned to death. His body was removed the next morning. The family of the deceased was present at the scene. A police investigation into the cause of the fire was ongoing. Report with photo: https://www.nbc.na/news/one-dead-after-vessel-caught-fire-walvis-bay.21902
Houston
Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) announced a series of projects, totaling over $170 million of capital investment, that will increase efficiency, add product liquidity, and enhance blending capabilities at its Pasadena and Galena Park terminals, part of its best-in-class refined products storage hub on the Houston Ship Channel. In response to growing customer demand, KMI’s liquids terminal platform now boasts 10 ship docks, 38 barge spots, 20 inbound pipelines providing connectivity to 10 regional refineries and chemical plants, 15 outbound pipelines, 14 cross-channel lines, and approximately 43 million barrels of storage on the Houston Ship Channel, North America’s leading port for energy exports.
SEA BREEZE
On April 7, 2025, the 'Sea Breeze' was detained in Trieste with 23 deficiencies, seven of which being regarded as seriously and grounds for a detention: 1) Safety of navigation - Charts Not updated 2)Labour conditions - Provisions quantity Insufficient 3) Fire safety - Fixed fire exthinguishing installation Inoperative 4) Fire safety - Fire detection and alarm system Not as required 5) Fire safety - Fire fighting equipment and Appliances Not as required 6) Fire safety - Evaluation of crew performance Lack of training 7) ISM - Ism certificate Not as required The vessel was released again on April 14 and left the port en route to Constanta with an ETA as of April 22. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063576908591
KIWALA
The authorities in Estonia have, during an inspection of the 'Kiwala', which was intercepted in the Baltic Sea by units from the Estonian Navy, found 40 shortcomings and deficiencies. Inspectors from the Transport Administration conducted a full-day inspection and identified several significant deficiencies. Of on the whole 40 deficiencies being found, 29 were deemed significant and formed the basis for detaining the vessel. 23 of those were documentation-related, while others concerned failures in the ship’s safety management system, crew emergency preparedness, and technical malfunctions. Estonian authorities stated that the vessel lacks a valid flag state and insurance. The ship could not to continue sailing, as it could endanger safety at sea and the marine environment. According to the ship's Chinese captain, the tanker is registered in Djibouti, which was however rejected by Djibouti, which has not been able to find the ship in its ship registe after having withdrawn the flage due to previous illegal activities of the ship, which has changed owners and names several times in recent years. The tanker had thus entered the Gulf of Finland on April 10 without valid flag state certification or insurance. The vessel is also subject to sanctions imposed by the European Union, United Kingdom, Canada, and Switzerland for past illicit conduct. After entering Estonia’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the ship was contacted and directed into Estonian territorial waters for inspection. The tanker is sailing in ballast and was on its way to Ust-Luga in Russia, when the Estonian authorities intervened, exercising its rights and international obligations to inspect a stateless vessel. Operating without a flag leaves a vessel outside any national jurisdiction, violating international maritime norms. The majority of the ship's 24-man crew is from China, the rest from Mauritania. Report with photo: https://tvpworld.com/86137104/estonian-inspectors-find-detained-shadow-fleet-tanker-has-dozens-of-deficiencies
Newcastle
Australia’s New South Wales government said on Wednesday it will fast track its review of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at the port of Newcastle, proposed by a South Korean firm, as the state urgently looks to beef up gas supply. The $430 million Newcastle GasDock LNG project, planned by South Korean firm EPIK, was declared “critical state significant infrastructure”, which means the project will not have to go to the state’s independent planning commission for approval, saving several months in the review process.
Hamburg
Germany’s largest universal port remains on a growth course, achieving a distinct 4.1 percent advance to 69.4 million tons in seaborne cargo handling in the first half of 2019. Especially good growth trend in the general cargo segment, up 6.1 percent at 48.4 million tons, was the main contributor to the excellent figures for total and container handling. The total for bulk cargo handling was just 0.3 percent lower than for last year’s first half at 21.0 million tons. Germany’s largest universal port remains on a growth course, achieving a distinct 4.1 percent advance to 69.4 million tons in seaborne cargo handling in the first half of 2019. Especially good growth trend in the general cargo segment, up 6.1 percent at 48.4 million tons, was the main contributor to the excellent figures for total and container handling. The total for bulk cargo handling was just 0.3 percent lower than for last year’s first half at 21.0 million tons.