Scrambling to Save an Engine for the Historic Tanker Mary A. Whalen

Posted on by May 14, 2020

The historic tanker Mary A. Whalen is in dire need of parts to restore its diesel engine. A powerplant in Missouri has a compatible diesel. All that needs to be done is to raise the money to move the engine cross-country before the power plant needs to dispose of the engine. Arrangements had been made and the plans were set to make the transfer, but then the pandemic hit. Things became more complicated and a lot more expensive. Now time is running out.

Mary A. Whalen is a coastal/harbor tanker built in 1938 and is one of the last of her type. The ship had a long and storied career and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The non-profit PortSide NewYork saved the tanker from the scrapper’s torch in 2005. Based on the Brooklyn waterfront, the ship has been the home of Portside’s nautical and community programming ever since.

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Wreck of USS Nevada, the Ship Too Tough to Die, Found Off Oahu

Posted on by May 12, 2020

The wreck of the USS Nevada, deliberately sunk by the US Navy in 1948, has been located in water nearly three miles deep, 65 nautical miles southwest of the Hawaiian island of Oahu. 

The old battlewagon has been called the ship “too tough to die” following a career which began in 1914. The Nevada served in World War I and then was the only battleship to get underway during the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Hit by one torpedo and at least six bombs during the attack, she was grounded by her crew, but refloated and rebuilt. Her guns supported five major amphibious landings at Attu, Normandy, Southern France, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. 

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Tens of Thousands of Crew Still Stranded As Cruise Lines Plan Reopening

Posted on by May 11, 2020

The major cruise lines have announced plans to restart at least some of their cruise operations in upcoming months, while tens of thousands of crew are still stranded aboard cruise ships.

Carnival, the world’s largest cruise line, has announced cruises beginning on August 1. Norwegian Cruise Lines has said it plans to restart on July 1, while Royal Caribbean has an even earlier date of June 15. It is unclear from where these earlier cruises may operate as the CDC’s current no-sail order does not expire until July 24. 

There are, however, still tens of thousands of cruise ship crew members stranded on over 100 ships in various ports or anchored just offshore. Continue reading →

Sailors’ Tattoos on Mother’s Day

Posted on by May 10, 2020

A repost appropriate for Mother’s Day.

Sailors choose their tattoos for various reasons. Among the most popular sailor tattoos are anchors, hearts and swallows.  Not infrequently, “Mom” also made an appearance as a reminder of loved ones and home.  On Mother’s Day it seems appropriate to look at sailors’ tattoos which reminded them of “Mom.”

Remy Melina, in the Live Science blog, writes about the popularity of “I Love Mom” tattoos:  The “I Love Mom” tattoo first became popular during World War II. As they traveled around the world, U.S. Navy sailors got tattoos to document their achievements and memories. Tattoo parlors began to pop up near military bases and patriotic tattoos came into vogue, according to John Gray’s book “I Love Mom: An Irreverent History of the Tattoo.”

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Virtual Tour of Schooner Zodiac

Posted on by May 9, 2020

Click on the image below to be taken to a virtual tour of the 127′ long schooner Zodiac.

The schooner Zodiac was built in 1924 for the heirs to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical fortune. After a successful career as a private yacht, winning many races and passing through several owners, the Zodiac was purchased by the San Francisco Bar Pilots Association in 1931. Renamed California, she operated as a pilot schooner on San Francisco Bay until 1972, the last sailing pilot vessel in the United States.

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Royal Navy Celebrates 75th Anniversary of VE Day

Posted on by May 8, 2020

Crew of the RFA Argus celebrating 75 years since VE day.

Parades and large celebrations were planned for the 75th anniversary of VE Day, Victory in Europe Day, the end of World War II in Europe on this day in 1945. And then the pandemic came along. Nevertheless, the Royal Navy has found ways to commemorate and celebrate the anniversary with silence, sound, and light. 

  • At 11 AM GMT, they observed 2 minutes’ silence to remember the sacrifices made between 1939 and 1945.
  • At 3 PM GMT Royal Navy warships and support vessels of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary at home and deployed around the world blasted their horns for a minute to celebrate victory.
  • At 9.30 PM GMT, naval ships will redirect their searchlights skywards to form ‘V for victory’ beams for five minutes.

Here is a short video of a “Virtual VE Day 75 Festival” by The National Museum of the Royal Navy:

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Owner of “Ghost Ship” MV Alta Ghosts, Leaving Ireland the Bill

Posted on by May 7, 2020

In February, we posted “The Long Strange Voyage of the “Ghost Ship” MV Alta,” about a derelict ship that, after 17 months abandoned and adrift, washed up unexpectedly on the Irish coast near the village of Ballycotton in County Cork. Now three months later, the Alta remains where she was dashed onto the rocks by the hurricane-force winds of Storm Dennis. No one is entirely sure what to do about her.

The problem is that the owner of the “ghost ship” has apparently ghosted. The authorities have had no luck locating those who own and are responsible for the 44-year-old, 77-meter cargo vessel. The concern is that the scrap value of the ship is close to zero and if the owner is not located the cost of removing the wreck will be borne by the Irish government. 

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5,000 Tonne Capacity Offshore Crane Collapses During Load Tests

Posted on by May 6, 2020

How is your day going? We hope that it is going better than the folks who were load testing a new 90 meter high Liebherr TLC crane on the offshore installation support vessel Orion 1. The crane had a 160-meter long boom and is designed to have a lifting height of up to 180 meters—almost twice as high as the Statue of Liberty—and a lifting capacity of 5,000 tonnes at more than 30 meters outreach. We use the past tense of “had” a 160-meter long boom, because during the load test something went badly wrong, as can be seen in the video below. Fortunately, there are no reports of anyone seriously injured in the accident. 

Orion 1 is owned by COSCO (QIDONG) OFFSHORE CO., LTD, and was moored at the quayside at the Liebherr construction yard in Rostock, Germany during the load test.

“Freakishly Warm” Gulf Waters May Contribute to Severe Spring Weather & Hurricanes

Posted on by May 5, 2020

As if a pandemic is not enough to worry about, the effects of climate change appear to be delivering some particularly nasty weather this year. The waters of the Gulf of Mexico have been described as being abnormally warm, freakishly warm, and “on fire,” as average surface water temperature never fell below 73 degrees over the winter for the first time on record. Cities from Texas to Florida experienced unusually warm winters.

“Out of 90 days this winter, Miami saw a record-setting 69 of them reach 80°F or warmer!” wrote Miami broadcast meteorologist John Morales for the website WxShift, a project of Climate Central. 

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Ships Sunk in “Exercise Tiger” Disaster Finally Protected

Posted on by May 4, 2020

Two Landing Ship Tanks (LSTs), sunk in a disastrous rehearsal of the D-Day landing, have been granted protected status by the government of Great Britain. At least 749 US sailors and soldiers died when the ships were attacked by German E-boats, fast patrol torpedo boats, in late April of 1944, on the coast of Devon. 

“Exercise Tiger” was the largest of several “rehearsal” landings made on UK beaches prior to the actual landings on D-Day in June 1944. Slapton Sands off Devon was selected as a site as it resembled part of the French Normandy coast chosen for the landings. “Exercise Tiger” was intended as a realistic rehearsal for the landings on Utah Beach by American forces.

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Capturing Cape Hatteras – A Night Under The Stars Of The Outer Banks

Posted on by May 3, 2020

A calming post for a spring Sunday. Here is another wonderful time-lapse by Wes Snyder. From the Youtube description: 

“Capturing Cape Hatteras” is a time-lapse of the Milky Way, crescent moon, and sunrise on March 20th, 2020. Amidst all the concerns of the spreading coronavirus, and our county being shut down to any outside visitors, we decided to head out onto the abandoned beaches of Buxton, NC, for a night of stargazing on Hatteras Island.

Capturing Cape Hatteras – A Night Under The Stars Of The Outer Banks

To see more of Wes Snyder’s work, check him out on Facebook, Instagram, or his website. Also check out his new book, Journey Through The Outer Banks.

Stuck on a Sailboat During the Pandemic — US Virgin Islands Gets Crowded

Posted on by May 3, 2020

Unless you happened to be very wealthy, hiding out on a boat may not be the best strategy during a pandemic. While billionaires may be able to jet off to their yachts in the Grenadines, the merely comfortable may find themselves stuck with limited ports of call and few options. Across the Caribbean, the South Pacific and even on the East Coast, boaters are discovering ports closed to new arrivals or subject to new regulations that seem to change day-to-day.

One of the few safe havens in the Caribbean currently is the U.S. Virgin Islands. Continue reading →

Virtual Shanty/Chantey Sing, Part 2 — Singalong with the Sheringham Shantymen

Posted on by May 1, 2020

Yesterday, we posted about a virtual chantey sing this Sunday, organized by New York’s South Street Seaport Museum. Here is a slightly different take on a virtual shanty sing.

The Sheringham Shantymen are celebrating their 30th anniversary and they are inviting everyone to join in an on-line singalong. The group has recorded their version of the shanty, “Drunken Sailor” and invites you to sing with them.  Here’s how it works:

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Virtual Shanty/Chantey Sing, Part 1 — South Street Seaport

Posted on by April 30, 2020

New York’s South Street Seaport Museum‘s monthly Chantey Sing is returning virtually, this Sunday, May 3rd from 2-4pm.

From the Seaport announcement: From our living rooms and kitchens, and even from the deck of Wavertree, join our round-robin of shared songs, featuring members of the New York Packet and friends. Listen in, lead or request a song, and belt out the choruses for your neighbors to hear during a Virtual Chantey Sing this Sunday, May 3, 2020 from 2-4pm. The event is FREE. Sign up here to receive the Zoom link 24 hours prior: www.seaportmuseum.org/ChanteySingMay.

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USS Kidd Diverts to San Diego with Coronavirus Outbreak, Over A Quarter Test Positive

Posted on by April 29, 2020

USS Kidd, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, was diverted to San Diego following a shipboard outbreak of the coronavirus. The ship had been deployed off South America on an anti-drug-trafficking mission when the outbreak occurred. So far, 64 of the crew on the Kidd have tested positive, or roughly 27% of the sailors tested so far. 

While on its way to San Diego, the Kidd rendezvoused with the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island which is equipped with an onboard intensive care unit staffed by a fleet surgical team to assist with care and screening of the crew. 

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