Warning: Rogue Wave Ahead — Predicting the Ship Killing Waves

Originally posted on gCaptain by Rick Spilman, on March 3, 2016. Reposted with permission. Rogue waves are real sea monsters. Rising many times higher than surrounding waves, they have the power to sink ships and to cripple offshore platforms. Recently, … Continue reading

Lessons Learned? Anthem of the Seas Cruise Cut Short to Avoid Storm

Has Royal Caribbean Lines learned its lesson? Just days after a passenger filed a lawsuit against RCL for knowingly sending the cruise ship Anthem of the Seas into a winter storm off Hatteras in early February, the cruise line cut … Continue reading

Update: Battle over the Pocket Battleship Graf Spee’s Nazi Eagle

What has been referred to as the Second Battle of the River Platte, may be coming to an end. In 2010, we posted about a legal battle over the salvaging of the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee which was scuttled … Continue reading

Coast Guard Rescues Fishermen Off New York’s Rockaway Inlet

Those of us around New York harbor have been watching a dramatic rescue unfold this morning. Around 2 AM, the 76-foot scallop fishing vessel Carolina Queen III, with 7 aboard, ran aground off Rockaway beach near the East Rockaway Inlet, … Continue reading

Crossing the Bar — Incredible US Coast Guard Motor Lifeboats

It takes a special breed of sailor to attempt to crest the monstrous waves of a harbor bar in a motor lifeboat.  It also takes a very specially designed and built boat to make crossing the bar possible. We recently … Continue reading

Anthem of the Seas — A Storm at Sea and a Storm on Twitter

The winter storm that struck Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas as it cruised off the coast of the Carolinas this weekend also set off a storm on Twitter.  Passengers and crew tweeted photos and video of overturned furniture, damaged rails, and … Continue reading