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Two years after damaging the Balticconnector pipeline and communication cables in the Gulf of Finland, the 'Newnew Polar Bear' has set sail for the Arctic again. Ot received a permit for Russia’s Northern Sea Route on July 22 and is currently heading north in the Sea of Japan in the direction of the Bering Strait. Russian authorities cleared the vessel to transit the Arctic in both westward and eastward directions between Aug 1 and Oct 31. This will be the vessel’s first return to Europe and the Arctic since the incident. Beijing officials initially had claimed that the dragging of the anchor was an accident caused by severe storm conditions, though meteorological conditions at the time were mild for the Baltic Sea in fall. Investigators and industry experts remained skeptical that the vessel could have accidentally dragged its anchor unnoticed for more than 100 nautical miles. The 'Newnew Polar Bear' incident caused more than $40 million in damages and for months disrupted regional energy and communication infrastructure. A criminal case against the captain Wan Wenguo is currently winding its way through the Chinese court system, with another round of hearings not before September 2025.

On July 28, 2025, the 'Virginie' got its propeller fouled by a part of its trawl while fishing about 26 nautical miles west of Pointe de la Hague in the English Channel near the Casquets TSS, and requested towing assistance at around 4:00 a.m. The CROSS Jobourg mobilized the lifeboat of the SNSM station Goury-La Hague, which took the trawler in tow and pulled it to the port of Cherbourg. Report with photo: https://www.ouest-france.fr/societe/faits-divers/au-large-de-la-pointe-de-la-hague-la-snsm-remorque-un-chalutier-en-action-de-peche-35238e4c-6bb5-11f0-bf3f-03e335cb8146

On the early morning of July 29, the 'Salvamar Spica' rescued eight migrants of North African origin, including a woman and three minors, who were sailing on a small boat, which was located 28 nautical miles southeast of Cabo de Gata in the Alboran Sea. The boat was spotted by the crew of the ferry 'Kalliste' (IMO: 9050618), sailing between Nador and Marseille, which notified the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Almería. Following the alert, the 'Salvamar Spica' was mobilized and proceeded to rescue the occupants. The migrants were taken on board and disembarked at around 2:23 a.m. in the port of Almería, where they were treated by a humanitarian assistance team. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1950091971160121433

The emergency services responded on July 28, 2025, at 1:05 p.m. to a gas leak on the 'Reach Remote 1', one of the offshore service provider Massterly's two USV vessels, in Kristiansund. Hydrogen fluoride, probably from a battery cell that had leaked, while the vessel was docked, and work was carried out on board. One man who was working on board inhaled the gas, became nauseous and was taken to the emergency room. The rest of the crew has been evacuated. The fire department established a safety distance of 50 meters and quickly isolated the leak. The cause of the incident was likely a short circuit in a battery cell that has led to a leak. At 1:30 p.m., the fire department had controlled the temperature and isolated the gas. The temperature was unchanged, and there was no risk of an explosion. The room where the leak occurred has been sealed off, and there was no longer any ongoing gas leak from the room. At 2:30 p.m., the entire dhip, with the exception of the room that has been sealed off, has been ventilated. The ship builder was contacted to handle the case further. An investigation was launched.

The Walloon Waterways Directorate continued to deal with the 'Kepejora', that sank in Auvelais. After the barge has been emptied of its 1,400 tons of scrap cargo, a specialized company was preparing the wreck for refloating on July 29, using powerful pumps, which have to remove the same amount of water from the flooded holds, in an effort to quickly restore ship traffic on the Sambre, which remained suspended due to a pollution threat. Report with photo: https://www.lavenir.net/regions/namur/2025/07/29/sambreville-dans-la-peniche-coulee-1-400-000-litres-deau-a-pomper-6YQMZR4RR5FRJCNSKZYPIPX7GY/