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The 'Guardian' ran aground on the beach approximately one mile north of Newcomb Hollow Beach in Wellfleet on Jan 3, 2025. The Wellfleet Fire Department wa dispatched to the area shortly before 9 a.m. The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England stated that the vessel did not incur any damage, and no pollution has resulted or been at the site of the grounding. Five crew members were aboard. A tug was heading to the area to attempt to pull the vessel back out to sea at high tide, slated for approximately 2 p.m. The vessel was refloated at 2:32 p.m. Report with photo: https://eu.capecodtimes.com/story/news/2025/01/03/cape-cod-fishing-boat-aground-responders-on-scene-on-outer-cape/77435495007/

The unloading of the 'Maccoa', stranded near Verchères since Dec 24, has been postponed until Jan 4, 2025. The barges needed to remove the 3,000 tons of corn were still not yet ready, according to the Canadian Coast Guard. Despite the situation due to an engine problem, the hull is intact and the crew is safe and doing well. There is electricity and water and thus normal living conditions on board. Report with photo: https://www.985fm.ca/audio/669416/navire-echoue-il-n-y-a-pas-de-pollution-et-l-equipage-se-porte-tres-bien

After an inspection by experts from the Waterways and Shipping Administration (WSV) on the afternoon of Jan 2, the large northern lock can still be used at low water. The restrictions on shipping remain limited thus. The authority has also waived the requirement to use a tug. But the repair work will be complex. The damaged gate must be removed for repairs. The replacement gate is still at the TKMS shipyard in Kiel and will not be ready until spring. The replacement will then take 14 day. According to initial findings, the 'Madicken' only suffered minor damage to the bow above the waterline. It remained stationary in Brunsbüttel as of Jan 4.

On Jan 4, 2025, the "Ocean Viking" has rescued 129 people from distress in the Mediterranean. Among those rescued between Italy and Greece were 43 children and 43 women, the organization SOS Méditerranée said. The ship was now heading to the port of Ravenna. In total, the "Ocean Viking" has 163 rescued people on board, after it had already rescued 34 people from Gambia and Syria on Jan 2.

On the morning of Jan 3, 2025, coordinated by the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas, the 'Guardamar Talía' has rescued 67 sub-Saharan people from a rubber boat 40 nautical miles eastnortheast of Arrecife. The migrants were disembarked in Arrecife. The 'Guardamar Calíope' rescued 55 sub-Saharan people from a rubber boat, which was located 28 nautical miles east of Órzola the same day. On the early afternoon, the 'Salvamar Acrux' was, mobilized by the CCS Tenerife of Salvamento Marítimo, has escorted a cayuco to the port of La Restinga, where the 62 people of sub-Saharan origin traveling on board have been disembarked. Report with photos: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1875193525911908810

The 'Zimrada' with a cargo of around 20,000 tons of ammonium nitrate , which had been transferred from the 'Ruby' onto the ship, has arrived off Abidjan on Dec 30, 2024, and dropped anchor. The cargo had been shipped from the Russian port of Kandalaksha on Aug 22, 2024. After the 'Ruby' ran aground due to inclement weather, causing damage to the vessel’s hull and propeller, the vessel, arrived for repairs at the port of Tromsø, where it caused the first controversy due to the sheer amount of explosives that was aboard the vessel. The vessel was sent away and subsequently denied entry to ports in Norway, Lithuania, and Sweden due to the dangerous nature of the cargo. A shipyard in Lithuania was supposed to offer repairs to the vessel, but the authorities prohibited it from entering until the cargo was removed. Later, the vessel was allowed to dock at the port of Great Yarmouth, where the ammonium nitrate was reported to be contaminated with the ship’s fuel and seawater due to the grounding of the vessel, thus decreasing the stability of the explosive and making it more dangerous. This contaminated cargo, which weighed around 300 tons, was then dumped into the ocean after discussions with relevant authorities in the UK at a site that offered the lowest possible environmental impact. This sparked local outrage and environmental concerns. The remaining cargo was then transferred to the 'Zimrida', which left the port of Great Yarmouth on Dec 16. The 'Ruby' remained stationary in Tyne as of Jan 4, 2025.

On the morning of Jan 3, the Danish Maritime Authority boarded the 'Glyuvursnes' after a crew member died the previous evening, while another crew member has beeb seriously injured. The ship has been detained in Hirtshals by the Danish Maritime Authority after the fire in the engine room. The deceased is a 34-year-old man, while the seriously injured is a 47-year-old man - both from the Faroe Islands. The 47-year-old has been placed in an induced coma and transferred to Rigshospitalet for treatment of his severe burns. The cause of the fire is still unknown, and fire technicians went on board together with the Danish Maritime Authority, which was working together with the Faroese maritime authority.

The Canadian Coast Guard has finally contracted a metal recycler to dispose of the CCGS 'Corporal McLaren', six years after vandals damaged the ship. The contract was awarded under an amendment to a contract first awarded to the Marine Recycling Corporation of Port Colborne, Ontario. Awarded in Oct 2024, the contract is valued at C$412,467.25, stipulating a “requirement to recycle, through ship breaking, the CCGS Corporal McLaren M.M.V. The contractor will be required to prepare the vessel for transportation, transport the vessel to the approved site and subsequently break and recycle the vessel in an efficient and environmentally responsible manner.” The vessel had laid at various Nova Scotia shipyards for the past six years while the Coast Guard worked to determine its fate and the Canadian government pursued a lawsuit related to the November 2018 incident in which the ship was damaged. The vessel was sent to the Canadian Maritime Engineering shipyard in Nov 2018 for an overhaul. Workers arriving at the shipyard on Nov 18 found the vessel out of its cradle and lying partially submerged. An investigation into how it had become dislodged from the cradle quickly discovered guidelines appeared to be cut and the Halifax Police later declared it an act of vandalism. The shipyard did not have a security fence and the closed-circuit cameras proved unreliable. The police believed the vandals used power tools to cut the two main wires. The remaining anchors snapped, with power cables being torn from the vessel as it slid into the water. The police were unable to identify the perpetrators but believed vandals entered the yard and cut the cables. The vessel remained submerged for a week before it was salvaged. Subsequent reports set the estimated repair costs at C$11 million. The survey showed the electrical systems had all been damaged and would require replacement. A contract was initially set for the remediation of mold and contamination from oil on the interior of the vessel. After being patched up it was moved to different shipyards.. The determination was finally made in 2024 that the cost of the repairs was too high and the vessel should be disposed of by recycling. Report with photo: https://maritime-executive.com/article/canada-sells-vandalized-coast-guard-ship-for-scrap

After an error of the 'Hasvik' has been repaired, and traffic on the connection between Loppa and Hasvik was expected to gradually return to normal during the run of Jan 4, 2025. Technicians finished repairing the ferry on the evening of Jan 3. For several days, the service has been reduced as a result of one of the two ferries being out of service. The 'Hasvik' sailed from Hasvik to Øksfjord on Jan 4 at 08:55 a.m., at 10:25 a.m. from Øksfjord to Tverrfjord and return at 10:4 a.m.0. There was ordinary scheduled traffic from 2.30 p.m.

After around 2,400 tons of heavy oil leaked off the Crimea when the 'Volgoneft 212' and 'Volgoneft 239' crashed, the oil slick has now reached the port city of Sevastopol on the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia. A small oil slick was spotted off Sevastopol, said the Russian-appointed mayor Mikhail Rasvozhaev on Jan 3, 2025. According to the Russian government, the spilled oil is particularly difficult to combat because it is dense and heavy and does not float on the surface of the sea. So far, helpers have collected around 78,000 tons of oil-contaminated sand in Crimea and on the Russian Black Sea coast. Moscow is using numerous old and sometimes uninsured tankers sailing under foreign flags for its so-called shadow fleet to circumvent the Western oil embargo.

The Istanbul Regional Port Authority of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure announced the details of the repair works to be initiated for the historical Hekimbaşı Salih Efendi Mansion in Istanbul in a letter published on Dec 31, 2024. After the "Vitaspirit", actually sailing as "'Viat Thuan 80-03", hit the wall of the mansion on April 7, 2018 and caused serious damage, the restoration works for the structure were accelerated. The marine works part of the restoration will be undertaken by Aras Deniz İnşaat A.Ş. The vessels to be used in the restoration process include the floating crane 'Koca Seyit', the tug "Gülsün Ana' and the service ship 'Albatros 3'. The plan made by Aras Deniz İnşaat A.Ş. was approved by the Istanbul Regional Port Authority. The works will be carried out between Jan 10 and May 25, 2025. Various safety and environmental measures must be followed during the works. These measures include taking all necessary measures for navigation, life, property and environmental safety, carrying out the work only during the day and in suitable weather conditions, and ensuring that all national and international documents of the vessels used are valid. Harmful substances must not be used in order to prevent any marine and environmental pollution during the works. In case of diving during the works, a separate diving permit must be obtained from the Istanbul Regional Port Authority. At the end of the works, it will be mandatory to provide written information to the Istanbul Regional Port Authority upon completion of the restoration activities. During this entire process, the instructions of the General Directorate of Coastal Safety and other authorized institutions will have to be fully complied with and the works will be carried out in a coordinated manner. The responsibility for the restoration will belong to Aras Deniz İnşaat A.Ş. officials. Report with photo: https://turkdeniz.com/vitaspirit-gemisinin-carptigi-yali-icin-deniz-araclariyla-restorasyon-basliyor

On the morning of Jan 3, 2025, coordinated by the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas, the 'Guardamar Talía' has rescued 67 sub-Saharan people from a rubber boat 40 nautical miles eastnortheast of Arrecife. The migrants were disembarked in Arrecife. The 'Guardamar Calíope' rescued 55 sub-Saharan people from a rubber boat, which was located 28 nautical miles east of Órzola the same day. On the early afternoon, the 'Salvamar Acrux' was, mobilized by the CCS Tenerife of Salvamento Marítimo, has escorted a cayuco to the port of La Restinga, where the 62 people of sub-Saharan origin traveling on board have been disembarked. Report with photos: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1875193525911908810

The 'Zimrada' with a cargo of around 20,000 tons of ammonium nitrate , which had been transferred from the 'Ruby' onto the ship, has arrived off Abidjan on Dec 30, 2024, and dropped anchor. The cargo had been shipped from the Russian port of Kandalaksha on Aug 22, 2024. After the 'Ruby' ran aground due to inclement weather, causing damage to the vessel’s hull and propeller, the vessel, arrived for repairs at the port of Tromsø, where it caused the first controversy due to the sheer amount of explosives that was aboard the vessel. The vessel was sent away and subsequently denied entry to ports in Norway, Lithuania, and Sweden due to the dangerous nature of the cargo. A shipyard in Lithuania was supposed to offer repairs to the vessel, but the authorities prohibited it from entering until the cargo was removed. Later, the vessel was allowed to dock at the port of Great Yarmouth, where the ammonium nitrate was reported to be contaminated with the ship’s fuel and seawater due to the grounding of the vessel, thus decreasing the stability of the explosive and making it more dangerous. This contaminated cargo, which weighed around 300 tons, was then dumped into the ocean after discussions with relevant authorities in the UK at a site that offered the lowest possible environmental impact. This sparked local outrage and environmental concerns. The remaining cargo was then transferred to the 'Zimrida', which left the port of Great Yarmouth on Dec 16.

The impending departure of the 'Penelope A' will come as a relief for the Elefsis Port Authority, which has been stuck with it since 2013. The authority, alerted by the ship’s deteriorating condition, had to take the drastic step of declaring the ferry a dangerous and hazardous vessel to expedite a swift removal from its moorings alongside a sunken floating dry dock in Elefsis Bay. To do this, an auction tender was structured along the lines of a wreck removal contract with the contractor obliged to remove the ship from the bay and deliver it to a European Union-approved ship recycling yard. The contract to remove the 'Penelope A' has been awarded to Marshall Islands-registered Valona Shiptrade, which agreed to buy the ship for €361,000 and has lodged a letter of guarantee of €36,100 as security for the successful removal. The company has been contractually bound to remove the vessel within three months. The long laid-up ship is in a decrepit condition. Work will have to be done to secure it for a two-day tow across the Aegean Sea to a recycling facility in Aliaga. Workers are already be on board, making the ferry seaworthy enough for the voyage. At the same time, the Agoudimos Lines branding has been painted over. The 'Penelope A' was the last of the Agoudimos Lines’s ships in service when it attempted to operate a summer season of domestic voyages in 2013 which ended in August. While docked in Rafina, the crew staged a sit-in demanding they get paid their back wages. The ship was towed to an anchorage in 2014 in Elefsina and left to rot. Attempts were made periodically to auction the ship, but the process got caught up in a Greek bankruptcy case.

The Swedish submarine salvage vessel 'Belos' will assist the Finns with the investigations of the sea cables suspected to have been damaged by the 'Eagle S', so that Finland can gain clarity about what has happened. On Jan 3, 2025, the Finnish police announced that the technical investigations of the seabed will soon be completed, while work to repair the cables was still underway. Representatives of the Cook Islands, the ship's flag state, were cooperating with Finnish police, but have also conducted their own investigations on the ship. The owner of the tanker, the Caravella LLC FZ with headquarters in the United Arab Emirates, has failed to have the seizure lifted by a Finnish court. The grid company Fingrid, which owns the damaged Easlink 2 power cable, announced on Jan 2 that the company will attempt to have the tanker confiscated at the Helsinki District Court as a financial guarantee for the costs of repairing the damage to the power cable. An inspection at the Port of Tema in 202, two months after the tanker was acquired by Caravella LLC-FZ, had revealed 24 discrepancies, including critical issues with maintenance, equipment, fire alarm system, and emergency power supply. A previous Port State Control inspection had uncovered a massive number of safety shortcomings on the tanker. Authorities had identified as many as 24 defiencie, leading to its detention. The inspectors had identified four critical issues related to the maintenance of the ship and its equipment, the emergency fire pump, fire alarm system, and emergency power supply. Other issues were related to safety, emissions, and documentation. The report found three separate shortcomings in the ship's oil log. The 'Eagle S' had also neglected international agreements on emissions reduction. Shortcomings were found, for instance, in the oil filters and the ship’s waste management practices. In addition, the ship was in disarray, with malfunctioning signal lights and sound signals, and inadequate safety and fire plans.

Three civil cases are pending in the Commercial Court, in which the official owner of the "Luminosity", the company "Flying Cloud Overseas Limited" from Guernsey, is named as the defendant. At the end of Oct 2024, in two of these disputes, the Commercial Court accepted the proposal of the creditors and issued two temporary measures prohibiting the "disposal, alienation and encumbrance" of the yacht, as well as the measure of its departure from the Porto Montenegro Tivat marina. Acting according to the court's decision, the Port Authority of Kotor confiscated the yacht's shipping documents. Provisional measures in both cases were issued at the proposal of the creditors, at whose risk and expense they were to be taken and implemented until the legal disputes have been brought to an end, whereby the purchasers of the yacht are obliged to bear the costs of insuring the ship in the meantime, i.e. to pay the minimum number of members engaged on it the crew. The 'Luminosity' is linked to Russian oligarch Andrei Gurjev younger, one of the Russians who were put on the list of EU sanctions introduced due to Russia's war against Ukraine. As of March 9, 2022, he was on the list of Russian politicians and oligarchs associated with the regime of the Russian dictator Putin, and to which the EU imposed strict sanctions, including the freezing of their private property. Shortly before that, Gurjev was on the list of those sanctioned by the Government of the United Kingdom. The yacht arrived in Tivat from the Italian shipyard of the Azimut-Benetti company in Viareggio on March 10, 2022, after the Russian oligarch was placed on the EU sanctions list. Since then, the ship has been tied up in the Porto Montenegro marina. After most of the crew left, she has been guarded by a skeleton crew. The British management company "Burgess" announced that it had received permission from the British Government to pay the crew of this yacht the earnings that had been withheld from them due to sanctions. The two cases that had previously been filed against the official owner of the yacht with requests for the imposition of a temporary injunction against the owner , the Italian ship supply company "Versilia Supply" Serrvices" from Vijaređ, i.e. the company "Adriatic Marinas" (Porto Montenegro) from Tivat. In 2024, the Italian company reported a claim in the amount of €99.929,42, and Porto Montenegro €424.221,79 for unpaid connection and accommodation services. After the Commercial Court rejected the creditors' requests for the imposition of temporary measures in both first-instance proceedings, they appealed. The Council of the Commercial Court rejected the objections, so that currently two other temporary measures imposed in active disputes for which the Commercial Court does not provide information on creditors are valid for the "Luminosity". The yacht was offered for sale this summer through the website of the broker tower "Denison Yachting", at a price of 135 million euros. There is an interested buyer who is ready to pay all the debts of its current official owner to creditors in Montenegro and abroad, who have conducted or are still conducting court proceedings in this regard. n their own names, but as a rule, in a company, usually from an offshore destination. That company (the so-called shell company) is the official owner of the ship, and to make things even more complicated, the yacht is usually managed by another company (management company) which takes care of the day-to-day running of the ship - paying the crew, maintaining, supplying, applying regulations and standards, etc. In addition, yachts are, as a rule, registered to one of the so-called a flag of convenience - tax havens that, in addition to lower duties for its owner, also provide guarantees of additional confidentiality of data related to the yacht to potentially interested third parties. However, even though the official papers say otherwise, in the world it is more or less unofficially known for almost every mega and superyacht which natural person is its real owner.

After around 2,400 tons of heavy oil leaked off the Crimea when the 'Volgoneft 212' and 'Volgoneft 239' crashed, the oil slick has now reached the port city of Sevastopol on the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia. A small oil slick was spotted off Sevastopol, said the Russian-appointed mayor Mikhail Rasvozhaev on Jan 3, 2025. According to the Russian government, the spilled oil is particularly difficult to combat because it is dense and heavy and does not float on the surface of the sea. So far, helpers have collected around 78,000 tons of oil-contaminated sand in Crimea and on the Russian Black Sea coast. Moscow is using numerous old and sometimes uninsured tankers sailing under foreign flags for its so-called shadow fleet to circumvent the Western oil embargo.

On the morning of Jan 3, 2025, coordinated by the CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas, the 'Guardamar Talía' has rescued 67 sub-Saharan people from a rubber boat 40 nautical miles eastnortheast of Arrecife. The migrants were disembarked in Arrecife. The 'Guardamar Calíope' rescued 55 sub-Saharan people from a rubber boat, which was located 28 nautical miles east of Órzola the same day. On the early afternoon, the 'Salvamar Acrux' was, mobilized by the CCS Tenerife of Salvamento Marítimo, has escorted a cayuco to the port of La Restinga, where the 62 people of sub-Saharan origin traveling on board have been disembarked. Report with photos: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1875193525911908810

Due to technical problems with the 'Fjordtind', serving on the route Bodø-Væran, on Jan 4, 2025, the 'Nordic Lady' was inserted as a replacement ferry, starting with the departure from Bodø at 09:15 a.m. on the route Sør-Landegode - Vokkøy - Helligvær - Givær - Bliksvær. The route departing Bodø on Jan 4 at 4 p.m. departed from the floating dock at the lifeboat station near the Stormen Library.

A person has been found dead aboard the 'Alma', while it was berthed at the Ocean Quay in Copenhagen, where it arrived on Jan 2,2 2025. There wer eno indications of a criminal incident, the police said. The reefer was on its way from Klaipeda and transiting the Øresund, when it suddenly turned around at the island of Ven on the morning and headed towards Copenhagen. The ship departed again on the morning of Jan 3, headed to Skagen.