The Spanish flagged fishing vessel 'Belmonte Rodríguez' suffered an engine fault on Sep 12 with three 3 crew members on board. The ship was located about three nauticla miles southeast of the port of Garrucha. The CCS Almería of Salvamento MArítimo mobilized the 'Salvamar Algenib' to assist, which took the vessel in tow and safely pulled it to the port of Garrucha. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1834266469762244811
News
MSC APOLLO
South African authorities were investigating the oil spill in Algoa Bay, believed to have leaked from the 'MSC Apollo' , which anchored in the bay on the afternoon of Sep 7. Another vessel in the region had first detected the spill after spotting oil-like blobs and an oily sheen on the water. Early examinations by response teams found that the oily substance came from the 'MSC Apollo' at around 5 p.m. As part of the response efforts, the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Limited (ITOPF) requested oil spill trajectory modelling by contacting the vessel’s insurers. As of Sep 12, the ship remained stationary in pos. S 33° 52' N 025° 43' E. The class society for the vessel, RINA, was involved representing the flag state, Cyprus, and dealing with technical issues on the vessel. A thorough inspection will be conducted to identify the source of the oil leak. The vessel will proceed to the port when dock space becomes available. Rangers searching a bird sanctuary have found a few oiled birds but overall, the spill appeared to be fairly limited in scope. No oil has yet been seen on the beaches and they were unable to locate an oil strain in an overflight of the area. Rangers accessing St. Croix Island, a bird preserve approximately five miles offshore, however, identified six oiled penguins the South Africa Maritime Safety Authority reported. Three of the birds were heavily oiled while three lightly oiled. The penguins were captured and transported to the local SANCCOB facility for treatment. However, SAMSA reported two additional oiled penguins evaded capture. Efforts were ongoing to locate and capture them. Report with photos: https://maritime-executive.com/article/oiled-birds-found-as-south-africa-investigates-spill-from-msc-vessel
AM PRIDE
On the morning of Sep 12, 2024, a fire broke out aboard the 'AM Pride', with 15 crew members on board, about 48.5 nautical miles south of Mossel Bay, Western Cape Province. At 10.30 a.m. the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) at SAMSA in Cape Town, received a distress call from PetroSA (Petroleum Oil and Gas Corporation of South Africa) stating that the messroom was on fire, and the ship required urgent assistance. The MRCC issued a MayDay relay, upon which two vessels, the 'Angelic Peace' and 'Thunderbird', which were sailing nearby, respnded. The PetroSA deployed a helicopter to the scene. The weather conditions were challenging with strong winds and high swells. However, the helicopter was able to hoist the crew, which had abandoned ship onto the life rafts, aboad. Eight of the castayways were brought to the FA platform, and seven more flown to George, to be shifted to Cape Town on Sep 13. It was planned to tow the damaged vessel to a safe location by the Emergency Towing Vessel 'Mkhuseli'.
KD PENDEKAR
A private company will continue the salvage process of the KD 'Pendekar'. The Navy will handle the appointment of the company. The Navy divers conduced early work for the salvage process, which included identifying, investigating and ensure that tools and sensitive information on the vessel do not go missing. Regarding the incident on Aug 28 where a Navy diver died, a post-mortem on the vessel's wrecking was expected to be completed in about a month.
PELICAN OF LONDON
Mr. Glover, a professional seafarer and a volunteer relief cook, was above the legal limit for duty on board the 'Pelican of London' when he fell to his death into the dry dock of Sharpness Docks in Gloucestershire, on the evening of Oct 2, 2023. A Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) report into the death said the vessel's drug and alcohol policy did not specify parameters for crew returning on board from recreational time ashore. The report recommended the vessel's owners, Seas Your Future, to review and amend the fleet policy and procedure for dealing with drugs and or alcohol. The MAIB said drug and alcohol policies in place did not help crew members recognise the limits that applied to crew returning from recreational time ashore. The report also found there was no safe means of access to the vessel from the gangway and on board training and risk assessments did not mitigate the risk of fall from the area. Seas Your Future, a charity who take young people from disadvantaged backgrounds on tall ship voyages, were also recommended to amend and review their policy and training for the rigging and approval of the gangway when used and their risk assessment procedure. Glover had lost his balance as he went to step down from the inboard end of the gangway onto the top step of the bulwark ladder when returning on board the vessel. His fall was neither prevented by the guard rope or by the gangway net. Under the influence of alcohol, and likely suffering from cold water shock, he was unable to climb out of the water and rapidly succumbed to drowning. The report also said how his absence was not noted until the following morning, with a search later taking place. His body was recovered by police divers on the afternoon of Oct 3. Following the incident, Seas Your Future have made a number of changes - including introducing an approval process for rigging and making the gangway safe, fitted bulwark stanchions to provide secure handholds when joining and departing the ship and revised the drug and alcohol policy. They have also made amendments to the SMS and emergency procedures, including for missing persons.