Second Refugee Boat Bound for Christmas Island Capsizes, Merchant Ships Rescue 136

Posted on by June 27, 2012

Photo taken by the MV Bison after arriving at the asylum-seeker boat before it capsized, June 27, 2012.

A  boat loaded with asylum seekers has capsized in Indonesian waters about 107 nautical miles north of Australia’s Christmas Island. The boat is reported to have had 150 passengers and crew aboard.  CNN is reporting that 136 have been rescued by two merchants ships.   This is the second boat overloaded with asylum seekers to have capsized and sunk within a week in the waters north of Christmas Island.
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21st Annual Wooden Boat Show at Mystic Seaport, June 29-July 1

Posted on by June 26, 2012

For anyone who loves wooden boats, Mystic Seaport is the place to be this weekend.  Starting Friday and running through the weekend, the 21st Annual WoodenBoat Show will feature a fleet of beautiful wooden boats of all shapes and sizes as well as a wide range of activities, including Family BoatBuilding, where families get together to build boats from kits during the show.  There will also be wooden boat and ship building demonstrations, films, and an “I Built It Myself” showcase and contest.  The event is hosted by Mystic Seaport and produced and presented by Wooden Boat magazine.  Click here to download the boatshow directory.   And if you aren’t a lover of wooden boats, a visit to Mystic this weekend just might change that.

OpSail Boston 2012 – June 30th to July 5th : Celebrating the USS Constitution and the War of 1812 Bicentennial

Posted on by June 27, 2012

Beginning this Saturday, Boston Harbor will once again be filled with tall masts and square sails.  OpSail Boston 2012 is celebrating the USS Constitution and the bicentennial of the War of 1812.  The USS Constitution, nicknamed “Old Ironsides” after British round shot bounced off her oak planks, is the world’s oldest commissioned naval vessel afloat.  Named by President George Washington, she captured numerous merchant ships and defeated five British warships during the War of 1812.
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Update: 100 Year Old Battleship Texas Shutdown Indefinitely by Leaks

Posted on by June 26, 2012

We posted recently about the attempts to repair hull leaks in the BattleshipTexas, the oldest remaining dreadnought battleship and only one of six surviving ships to have served in both World War I and World War II.  The ship has been on exhibit at the San Jacinto Battlefield State Historic Site since 1948. Last Thursday, the ship was pumped out and a patch installed over a 2 in inch hole in the ship. The ship was floating on her lines with no leaks until Saturday night when new leaks, from another area of the ship’s hull, again began flooding the old dreadnought.  The museum ship, which had reopened Saturday, has now been shut down to visitors indefinitely.

USS Texas springs more leaks; 1,500 gallons per minute leaking
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Seafarers Awareness Week – June 25 to July 1

Posted on by June 25, 2012

In concert with  IMO’s “Day of the Seafarer,”  the good folks at Seafarers UK are sponsoring Seafarers Awareness Week, starting today and running through the July 1.  Seafarers UK is a leading charity for seafarers in need and gives grants of £2.5 million annually to more than 70 charities that help seafarers, their families and dependants, across the Merchant Navy, Fishing Fleets, Royal Navy and Royal Marines.

Seafarer’s UK has put together series of short videos in observance of the week, which we will be reposting.  In the   video below, piracy survivor, Chirag Bahri tells his story.

Seafarers UK Piracy Survivor

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Max Young, Circumnavigator Whose Boat was Sunk by a Whale, Returns Home After Rescue

Posted on by June 25, 2012

We recently posted about Max Young, who was close to completing a twelve year circumnavigation on his 50′ sailboat, Reflections, when it was struck by a whale. The sailboat was severely damaged by the impact and began sinking. Max was rescued by the Ocean Virgo, a Panamanian-flagged merchant ship.  He recently returned home to Sacramento and had a few comments about his ordeal.

Day of the Seafarer 2012 – Seafarers Hold the World Together

Posted on by June 25, 2012

Today is the IMO “Day of the Seafarer.”  So? Why does it matter?  It matters because without the hard working men and women who go to sea, our world, our global civilization, simply would not exist.

Take a look at a world  map.  Where the are major cities?  With few exceptions, the major cities of the world are either on natural harbors or at the head of navigation of large rivers. These cities exist because of trade, specifically trade by sea.  90% of world trade is carried by sea.  It is only the seafarers who make that trade possible.  Our misnamed planet, Earth, is almost three quarters ocean, which, because of seafarers is a vast highway that binds us all together.

Seafarers bring the energy we rely on, the raw materials we take for granted, the clothes we wear and the goods we could not live without. The computer or tablet that you are reading this on was built from components sourced from around the world.  Even the global internet is only possible because seafarers in cable-laying ships laid the fiber-optic cable on the ocean floor that links continents together in a  “World Wide Web.”

Over one million men and women work, day and night, every day of the year, under difficult and often dangerous conditions, to make the world we live in possible. Seafarers hold the world together, yet too often they are invisible and ignored.  They deserve far more than a day’s appreciation.  We hope that everyone will join us in thanking the seafarers all across our watery globe for their labors and in wishing them all fair treatment, fair wages and fair seas.

IMO Secretary-General pays tribute to seafarers around the world

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30th Annual Coney Island Mermaid Parade

Posted on by June 24, 2012

Photo: Will Van Dorp

The Mermaid Parade has been held on Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York since 1983.  And I missed it again this year.  Damn. Maybe next year.  Fortunately, the intrepid Will Van Dorp was on hand with his camera.   Check out his Tugster blog for more photos.

The parade started as a beginning of summer celebration for workers in the Coney Island and grew to attract artists and performers from around the country. The event attracts thousands of particiapnts and hundreds of thousands of spectators.  It is billed as the “largest art parade in the US” and often is claimed to be the largest art parade in the world.  Parade founder Dick Zigun say,  “It’s nautical. It’s naughty. There is a little bit of nudity, but it’s not New Orleans, it’s Brooklyn style.”

30th Mermaid Parade! (2012)

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Update: MV Alaed, Re-flagged and Ready to Sail to Syria with Helicopter Gunships

Posted on by June 24, 2012

Photo: REUTERS

Last week, we posted about the MV Alaed, a 9,000 DWT geared cargo ship, reported to be carrying refurbished Russian attack helicopters bound for Syria. The ship, sailing under the Curacao flag, was turned aback after the cancellation of its P&I insurance coverage. The MV Alaed has been reflagged under the Russian flag and is reported to be ready to set sail from Murmansk to Syria in a few days. The ship will sail with another vessel as escort. Moscow is one of Syria’s main arms suppliers. There is no UN arms embargo on Syria.

Russian arms ship to make second attempt to deliver helicopters to Syria

Sea Orbiter – A New Generation of Ocean Explorer

Posted on by June 23, 2012

The Sea Orbiter concept design looks like something straight out of science fiction.  Floating half above and half below the surface of the water, it appears to be more like a scimitar-shaped inter-galactic spaceship than any sort of  oceanographic research vessel. Fifty eight meters high, it will drift on the ocean currents as a largely self-sustaining ocean-going laboratory.  The concept of French architect Jacques Rougerie,  the design has been under development for the past 12 years and construction is planned to begin this October.

Sea Orbiter

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Coastal Freighter Jireh, Aground on Mona Island Off Puerto Rico with Cargo of Undocumented Haitians

Posted on by June 22, 2012

The 185-foot Honduran-flagged coastal freighter Jireh ran aground Thursday morning on Mona Island, a rocky outcropping in the Mona Passage about midway between Mayagüez, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.  The island is uninhabited and maintained as a nature preserve, while the reefs around the island are popular dive sites.  While the grounding damaged a section of coral reef, there have been no reports of oil leakage.

In addition to the five crew members aboard, there were 79 undocumented Haitians on the ship when she ran aground.  Reportedly, dozens of the undocumented migrants swam to shore on Mona.  The freighter is reported to have been carrying no cargo, other than the undocumented passengers, all of whom have now been accounted for by Customs and Border Patrol officials.

Reefs damaged, but migrant freighter not leaking after grounding at Mona
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Fourth Annual North River Historic Ship Festival June 28-July 1, Hudson River Park Pier 25

Posted on by June 22, 2012

If you are anywhere near New York City next week, the Fourth Annual North River Historic Ship Festival looks like lots of fun.  Hosted by the North River Historic Ship Society, the festival commences Thursday night, June 28th, with an opening party on the the historic railroad barge Lehigh Valley No 79  at Pier 25 on the Hudson  to honor two “Historic Ship Champions” – Norman Brouwer and Lee Gruzen.  Norman Brouwer is a maritime historian, lecturer and author of The International Register of Historic Ships, and former librarian, archivist and curator of ships at South Street Seaport Museum.  Lee Gruzen is an author and harbor advocate, program director of the New York Ship Lore and Model Club, and co-creator of Seaport Speaks.  Tickets are still available here.
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Today in History – The Rescue of the Greeley Expedition, June 22, 1884

Posted on by June 22, 2012

Thanks to Anne Maclachlan and the Naval History & Heritage Command for pointing out on Facebook, a forgotten bit of history – the ill-fated Greely Expedition, which was rescued at Cape Sable on Ellesmere Island on June 22, 1884.

In 1881, First Lieutenant Adolphus Washington Greely of the US Army lead the International Polar Expedition, also known as the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition,  The expedition intended to collect astronomical and polar magnetic data and to establish a new record for the distance traveled north.  The 24 man expedition was delivered to Lady Franklin Bay, an inlet into the northeastern shore of Ellesmere Island on the Nares Strait, by the ship Proteus. They arrived during an exceptionally warm summer and underestimated the difficulty of being resupplied.
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Congratulations to Boatbuilder Harold Burnham of Essex – Awarded NEA National Heritage Fellowship

Posted on by June 22, 2012

Harold A. Burnham

Wooden boat building is part science, part engineering and part pure artistry.  On Tuesday, the National Endowment for the Arts honored Harold Burnham of Essex, MA as a 2012 recipient of a National Heritage Fellowship.  Harold Burnham is an eleventh generation boatbuilder, whose boatyard is on land where ancestor Oliver Burnham operated a boatyard five generations ago. From the NEA announcement:

The …2012 NEA National Heritage Fellows, … recognizes folk and traditional artists for their artistic excellence and efforts to conserve America’s culture for future generations. The fellowships are the nation’s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts, and include a one-time award of $25,000. 

Throughout their careers, these artists have honored the history of their art forms while also incorporating their own creativity and innovation to carry the art forms into the 21st century. For example, Harold Burnham, 11th-generation in a line of boat designers and builders, creates his vessels using hand tools and incorporating locally harvested wood, just as members of his family did some 300 years ago. However, while rooted in the past, Burnham’s designs demonstrate his own blend of form and function.

Last year we posted about the launching of the schooner Ardelle from Burnham’s yard in Essex. A short video about the schooner’s construction:
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Update: Tsunami Floating Dock an Instant Tourist Attraction on Oregon’s Agate Beach

Posted on by June 21, 2012

Earlier in the month, we posted about a a 66 feet long, 165 tonne, starfish and barnacle encrusted, steel and concrete floating dock that washed up on Agate beach, south-west of Portland, Oregon.  We were surprised to hear that the dock, torn free in last year’s Japanese tsunami  would become a tourist attraction.  The Japanese dock has drawn tens of thousands of visitors tot he beach since it washed ashore in early June.   It won’t stay a tourist attraction for long, however.   Earlier this week, Oregon officials picked Ballard Diving & Salvage of Vancouver, Wash., to dismantle the dock for $84,155. The company says it plans to start Monday and complete the job in about a week.

Tsunami Relic Puts Beach on Map

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Asylum Seekers Boat Capsizes North of Australia’s Christmas Island – 200 Believed Aboard

Posted on by June 21, 2012

With a sad familiarity, another overloaded boat, filled with desperate asylum seekers trying to reach Australia’s Christmas Island, has capsized in Indonesian waters. Up to 200 people are believed to have been aboard the vessel when it capsized.  Indonesia’s search and rescue authority BASARNAS is coordinating the search with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA).  West Australian Police Commissioner Karl O’Callaghan has been quoted as saying that said about 40 people were spotted on the upturned hull, others were in the water and up to 75 others may be dead. “We have grave fears for the remainder,” he said.

Asylum seeker boat capsizes north of Christmas Island

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VIDEO: Asylum boat capsizes]

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Coast Guard – Link Between Texas and New Jersey Hoax Distress Calls?

Posted on by June 20, 2012

Last week we posted about a distress call to the Coast Guard reporting a yacht explosion off the New Jersey shore, which was an apparent hoax.  The search and rescue operation which resulted is estimated to have cost over $300,000.  Now the Coast Guard is noting the similarities in an distress call received near Galveston, Texas on May 20 which is also believed to have been a hoax.  In both cases the caller used a high frequency Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service radio channel, a channel not typically used for reporting emergencies. The phrasing and terminology used in both hoax calls was also very similar. and may have reflected a knowledge of Coast Guard procedures.  The voice on the calls was very similar and is now being analysed by experts.

Coast Guard: Similarities in Texas, N.J. hoax calls

Making a false call is a federal felony, with a maximum penalty of six years in prison, a $250,000 fine and reimbursement to the Coast Guard for the cost of performing the search.

New Hornblower Hybrid In New York Harbor – Powered by Diesel, Wind, Solar and Fuel Cells

Posted on by June 20, 2012

In December of 2010, we posted about a new vessel under construction at Derecktor Shipyards for Hornblower New York. It was to be a hybrid excursion boat powered by diesel engines, as well as by solar and wind power and by hydrogen fuel cells.  The new Hornblower Hybrid has arrived in New York harbor.  It has actually been here since October, completing trial and Coast Guard certification. I happened to see it at the dock at Liberty Landing a couple of weeks ago and Hornblower’s Cameron Clark was kind enough to show me around.
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MV Alaed, Russian Ship Carrying Arms for Syria, Makes a U-Turn & Heads Back to Russia

Posted on by June 22, 2012

The MV Alaed, a 9,00 DWT geared cargo ship, was reported to be carrying refurbished Russian attack helicopters, as well as missiles and other unspecified munitions, on a voyage from Russia to Syria.  Today, about 50 miles (80.4km) off Scotland’s north coast, the ship turned around and headed back to Russia. The change in course was not induced by warships or threats of air attack but by the withdrawal of the ship’s Protection and Indemnity insurance by The Standard Club in London.

A statement by the insurer said,  that the cover was withdrawn because the owners of the ship had “broken internal rules” of the club – a mutual insurance association – and not on the instructions of the UK government.

“We were informed on Friday evening that the ship might be carrying weapons, in particular attack helicopters, missiles and non-specific munitions, and we are making inquiries to establish what their side of the story is. There are exclusion clauses in our cover and, for anyone involved in improper or unlawful trade, we can cancel cover.”

Ship ‘carrying attack helicopters to Syria’ halted off Scotland heads for Russia

‘Extraordinary’ 800 Year Old Shipwreck Found off Swedish Coast

Posted on by June 19, 2012

Portion of ship’s knee and frame recovered from wreck. Photo: Kalmar Country Museum

This is a busy time for underwater explorers in the waters off Sweden. Yesterday, we posted about an unidentified object on the Baltic Sea floor which the media has been referring to as the Millennium Falcon.   Recently, divers off the south coast of Sweden have found what is being described as an “extraordinary” shipwreck, estimated to be 800 years old.

‘Extraordinary’ shipwreck found off Swedish coast
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