Marine Link
Monday, July 15, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Casualties News

15 Jul 2024

One Dead, One Missing After Tanker Strikes Passenger Boat in Texas

(File photo: U.S. Coast Guard)

One person has died and another is missing after a commercial tanker struck a recreation vessel near Port Aransas, Texas.The U.S. Coast Guard said it received a call from a good Samaritan via channel 16 at 5:28 a.m. reporting the collision between. The recreational vessel, reported to be a commercial pleasure boat, became partially submerged, and the four people on board went into the water.After receiving the call, the Coast Guard issued an urgent marine information broadcast…

11 Jul 2024

Rush to Prevent Oil Spill from Grounded Ship off South African Coast

(Photo: South African Maritime Safety Authority)

Salvage operations were in high-gear on Thursday to prevent a potential oil spill and pollution along South Africa's west coast from a grounded general cargo vessel, authorities said.The Panama-flagged "Ultra Galaxy" ran aground close to Doring Bay, some 300 km north of Cape Town, late on Tuesday after it started listing badly.

11 Jul 2024

CMA CGM Vessel Drops 44 Containers in Heavy Seas

© foto-select / Adobe Stock

French shipping and logistics company CMA CGM said on Thursday that its ship "Benjamin Franklin" had lost 44 containers in difficult weather conditions off the coast of South Africa on Tuesday."No injury to the crew has been reported, no pollution, no strong damage to the vessel which remains fully seaworthy," the company said, adding that 33 additional containers had been damaged.The ship was traveling westbound from Asia to Europe when it encountered "unexpectedly strong adverse weather conditions"…

09 Jul 2024

US Navy Officer Relieved After Ship Grounding off Gabon

Capt. Lenard Mitchell, commanding officer of the expeditionary sea base USS Hershel "Woody" Williams (ESB 4) addresses the crew during an All Hands Call in the hangar bay. (Photo: Ridge Leoni / U.S. Navy)

The captain of U.S. Navy ship USS Hershel “Woody” Williams has been relieved of his duties after the ship went aground under his command earlier this year.The Navy is still investigating the incident, which saw the 784-foot Lewis B. Puller-class expeditionary mobile base vessel go soft aground near Gabon's port of Libreville on May 9. But it said "sufficient findings of fact emerged during the investigation to warrant the relief" of commanding officer Capt. Lenard Mitchell."The U.S.

09 Jul 2024

Chart Error Led to ATB Grounding in Alaska

Track of the Cingluku/Jungjuk as it approached Shakmanof Cove, overlaid on
NOAA ENC US4AK5PM. (Background source: NOAA ENC as viewed on Made Smart
automatic identification system. Courtesy NTSB)

An articulated tug and barge (ATB) hit a known underwater rock near Kodiak, Alaska, last year, leading to a grounding that caused $1.4 million in damages, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday.The Brice Marine-owned and -operated tugboat Cingluku and barge Jungjuk were transiting into Shakmanof Cove from Marmot Bay on May 25, 2023, with six crewmembers onboard. The Cingluku and Jungjuk operated together as an ATB, and were primarily used to transport containerized cargo and vehicles.

09 Jul 2024

Iranian Warship Sahand Entirely Sinks Despite Rebalancing Efforts

Iranian Navy frigate Sahand sank in shallow waters in the southern port of Bandar Abbas (Photo: Social media)

The Iranian Navy frigate Sahand entirely sank in shallow waters on Tuesday in the southern port of Bandar Abbas, Nournews agency said, after it was briefly repositioned following its initial capsizing on Sunday."The Sahand warship, which was rebalanced on the water with great difficulty on Monday, has now sunk after the rope holding the ship broke," said Nournews, a news agency affiliated to the Supreme National Security Council.On Sunday, state media said the ship had capsized during repairs at a wharf due to water ingress and that efforts were being made to rebalance it.The Iranian-built ste

03 Jul 2024

Military Groups Say They Set Fire to Russian Warship

Serpukhov (Credit: GAlexandrova, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons)

A Ukrainian military intelligence official said on Wednesday that a fire on a Russian warship in the Baltic Sea in April was caused by a joint operation conducted by his GUR agency and a pro-Kyiv Russian military group.On April 7, the Serpukhov missile ship stationed in Russia's Kaliningrad region was set on fire, the GUR intelligence agency said at the time. It did not claim responsibility earlier.GUR spokesperson Andriy Yusov told Reuters the operation was conducted in tandem with the Freedom of Russia Legion.

03 Jul 2024

Houthi Explosive Drone Boat Attacks Escalate Red Sea Danger

© Sunday Stock / Adobe Stock

Yemen's Houthis are sending drone boats packed with explosives into the Red Sea as they intensify their attacks on merchant ships that have little defense against the "sophisticated shift" in tactic, maritime security sources say.Iran-aligned Houthi militants first launched aerial drone and missile strikes on the trade route in November in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. In over 70 attacks, they have sunk two vessels, seized another and killed at least three seafarers.In recent weeks…

03 Jul 2024

Abandoned Tanker Lavant Has Likely Sunk off Yemen

Russian shipping group Sovcomflot said it rescued the crew of the tanker Lavant, which was taking in water off Yemen's coast (Photo: Sovcomflot)

An abandoned tanker that was drifting off Yemen's coast in June has disappeared and is believed to have sunk, three navy and security sources said, the latest vessel lost in the strategically important Red Sea.The area, on the main shipping route from Europe to Asia, is considered high risk as Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants have launched more than 70 attacks on merchant vessels since October in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.Maritime security sources said last week the abandoned tanker, the Lavant, was unlikely however to have been targeted by the Houthis.

02 Jul 2024

Deadly Hurricane Beryl Churns Toward Jamaica

(Image: NOAA)

Hurricane Beryl barreled toward Jamaica as a powerful Category 4 storm on Tuesday after battering smaller islands in the eastern Caribbean, and scientists cited human-caused climate change as the likely culprit for the storm's rapid strengthening.The unusually early hurricane felled power lines and unleashed flash floods. It has so far claimed at least three lives.Beryl, the 2024 Atlantic season's first hurricane and the earliest storm on record to reach the highest category on the Saffir-Simpson Scale, hit St.

27 Jun 2024

Cargo Vessel Attacked Near Yemen's Port of Hodeidah

(Image: United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations)

A merchant vessel reported being hit by a projectile in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen on Thursday, British security firm Ambrey said.No injuries or damage were reported in the incident, which occurred 84 nautical miles west of Yemen's port of Hodeidah, Ambrey added.The vessel was headed for city of Dammam in Saudi Arabia.The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations also said it had received a report of the incident.UKMTO added that the vessel and crew were reported to be safe and the vessel was proceeding to its next port of call."The nature of the attack is reported as a waterborne impro

27 Jun 2024

Greek Coastguard Officers to Testify as Suspects in Migrant Shipwreck Probe

©Hellenic Coast Guard

Greek coastguard officers will testify as suspects as part of a disciplinary investigation into their role in a deadly migrant shipwreck off Greece, three sources told Reuters on Thursday.Hundreds are feared to have died when a vessel, monitored by the Greek coastguard for several hours, capsized and sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek coastal town of Pylos on June 14, 2023.Up to 700 people were in the trawler which left Libya heading for Italy. Some 104 survivors were rescued but only 82 bodies were recovered.

26 Jun 2024

Yacht Crew Expected to Deny Arson Charges Over Fire on Greek Island

© burnstuff2003 / Adobe Stock

The crew members of a yacht accused of starting a forest fire last week on the Greek island of Hydra are expected to deny arson charges when they appear before a judge on Wednesday, a legal source said.Wildfires are common in the Mediterranean country but they have become more frequent and devastating due to hotter, drier and windier weather, which scientists link to climate change. Greece has in recent years beefed up penalties for arson.The fire, which is believed to have been sparked by fireworks…

26 Jun 2024

Sovcomflot Says Its Ship Rescued Crew from Tanker Off Yemen

NS Africa (Photo: Cornelis Dijkshoorn / SCF)

A ship operated by Russian shipping group Sovcomflot rescued the crew of a tanker taking in water off Yemen's coast this week, the state-owned company, which is under Western sanctions, said on Wednesday.Sovcomflot tanker NS Africa was sailing southeast of the port of Nishtun in southern Yemen on June 23 when it responded to a distress call by the Lavant tanker whose crew had abandoned ship and were in a life raft in the open sea."At 1410 local time, the crew of the tanker NS Africa ...

24 Jun 2024

NTSB Inspecting Key Components from Containership Dali

(Photo: Jason Showmaker / U.S. Navy)

The National Transportation Safety Board said on Monday it is inspecting key electrical components that were removed from the cargo ship Dali that crashed into a Maryland bridge in March, killing six people and destroying the Patapsco River crossing.In May, the NTSB said the Dali lost electrical power several times before the crash into the Francis Scott Key Bridge, including experiencing a blackout during in-port maintenance and shortly before the crash.The NTSB said it is continuing…

20 Jun 2024

Cruise Ship Rescues 68 Migrants, Five Dead

© bullshead / Adobe Stock

A luxury cruise ship has rescued dozens of migrants who were trying to reach the Spanish Canary Islands in a fishing boat that had stalled in rough seas killing five people, Spanish authorities and the cruise operator said on Thursday.The archipelago has become the main point of entry to Spain for illegal migrants from Africa in recent years, and the route is also the deadliest. Migration rights group Walking Borders said last week that nearly 5,000 migrants died at sea on that…

18 Jun 2024

Bulk Carrier Reportedly Sunk by Houthis in the Red Sea

This photo shared widely across social media shows the bulk carrier Tutor after it was struck by the Iran-aligned Houthis in the Red Sea (Photo: social media)

Yemen's Houthi militants are believed to have sunk a second ship, the Tutor, in the Red Sea, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Tuesday.The Greek-owned Tutor coal carrier was struck by missiles and an explosive-laden remote-controlled boat on June 12 and had been taking on water, according to previous reports from UKMTO, the Houthis and other sources."Military authorities report maritime debris and oil sighted in the (Tutor's) last reported location," UKMTO said in a security update.The Tutor's manager could not immediately be reached for comment.One crew member…

18 Jun 2024

Fiji's Brand New Patrol Boat Runs Aground

(Photo: Republic of Fiji Navy)

Responders are working to salvage Fiji's brand new naval patrol boat, which ran aground during its maiden voyage last week.The vessel, RFNS Puamau, is a Guardian-class Patrol Boat (GCPB) built by Austal for the Australian Department of Defence, which gifted the vessel to the Republic of Fiji Navy.Just months after the vessel's official handover in March, it hit a reef on Fiji's remote Lau group of islands on June 10, during its first patrol.Now salvors are working to recover the stricken vessel while minimizing environmental impacts, including a potential oil spill.

17 Jun 2024

Philippine Captain Vows to Return to Sea After Houthi Attack

This photo shared widely across social media shows the bulk carrier Tutor after it was struck by the Iran-aligned Houthis in the Red Sea (Photo: social media)

The Philippine crew of a vessel attacked by Yemen's Houthi militants was repatriated to the Philippines from Bahrain on Monday, with the ship's captain vowing to return to the seas after the crew had recovered from the experience.Iran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility for a missile strike on the Liberia flagged, Greek-owned, coal carrier Tutor near the Yemeni port of Hodeidah on June 12. The ship was carrying 22 crew from the Philippines and one is still missing in the flooded engine room."We first need to rest because of the trauma…

13 Jun 2024

Fire Erupts on Vessel Hit by Projectiles East of Yemen

© Óscar / Adobe Stock

Missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi militants struck the Palau-flagged Verbena cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday, sparking a fire and severely injuring one of her crew, U.S. Central Command said.The Iran-allied Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea region since November in solidarity with the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas.Thursday's attack marked their second direct hit on a merchant ship in two days, and the…

14 Jun 2024

Houthi-hit Bulk Carrier Tutor Abandoned and Adrift

© lunamarina / Adobe Stock

The crew of a Greek-owned vessel damaged in an attack by Yemeni Houthi militants has been evacuated, and the abandoned ship is drifting in the Red Sea, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Friday.One sailor from Tutor, the Liberia-flagged coal carrier, remains missing, officials in the Philippines said.The attack near the Yemeni port of Hodeidah on Wednesday caused severe flooding and damage to the engine room and left Tutor unable to maneuver.Iran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility for the missile attack on Tutor and another vessel…

14 Jun 2024

US Says it Destroyed Houthi Patrol Boats, Drone

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely (DDG 107) launches Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles in response to increased Iranian-backed Houthi malign behavior in the Red Sea Jan. 12, 2024. (Photo: Jonathan Word / U.S. Navy)

The U.S. military said on Thursday it destroyed two Houthi patrol boats, one uncrewed surface vessel and one drone over the Red Sea in its latest effort to degrade the capabilities of the Iran-backed group.The Houthis, who control the most populous areas of Yemen, targeted the Verbena in the Arabian Sea as well as the Seaguardian and Athina in the Red Sea, the Iran-aligned group's military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a televised speech earlier on Thursday.The attack on the Palau-flagged Verbena cargo ship sparked a fire and severely injured one of her crew, U.S.

18 Jun 2024

So Close to Death: Captain Recounts Migrant Sea Rescue

(Photo: RESQSHIP / Eleana Elefante)

Saving migrants from one of the shipwrecks that have left dozens dead or missing off Italy's shores involved walking through bodies to find barely alive survivors, the NGO captain involved in one of the rescues said on Tuesday.One boat with 51 survivors and 10 bodies was intercepted about 90 kilometres (56 miles) south of the island of Lampedusa, while another was spotted about 200 kilometres east of the southern Italian region of Calabria.Eleven survivors from the second shipwreck and the body of a woman were taken ashore on Monday…