Bulk Carrier Destroys Mansion on the Banks of the Bosporus

Saturday was a bad day on the Bosphorus. The Maltese-flagged 74,269 DWT bulk carrierVitaspirit suffered a steering gear failure while transiting Istanbul’s Bosphorus Strait. The ship was traveling south, approaching the Second Bosphorus Bridge, when it veered out of control. Fortunately, it missed … Continue reading

The Mystery of North Korea’s Chong Chon Gang – Smuggling What, to Where, and Why?

The story is dramatic. The North Korean 14,000 dwt bulk carrier Chong Chon Gang was stopped by the Panama Canal Authority. A container, believed to carry undeclared military weapons was found hidden in a cargo of bagged sugar. The Korean … Continue reading

Bulk Carrier Ocean Breeze Driven Ashore in San Antonio, Chile in High Winds and Seas

The bulk carrier Ocean Breeze came shore on Llolleo Beach, near the port of San Antonio, Chile yesterday in high winds and seas.  In a dramatic rescue, all 24 crew members were airlifted off the ship by Chilean Navy helicopters.   No … Continue reading

British Solo Rowers Sarah Outen & Charlie Martell Rescued from Tropical Cyclone Marwar

Tropical cyclone Marwar ended attempts by two solo British rowers to row across the Pacific this week.  Sarah Outen, 27, was attempting to traverse the globe using only human power, by either rowing, kayaking or cycling.   She began her … Continue reading

Large Reward for Whistle-blowing Engineer on M/V Aquarosa

When US Coast Guard inspectors came aboard the bulk carrier M/V Aquarosa in Baltimore in February of 2011, a junior engineer slipped them a note, which read, “I have sometheng to till you but secret.”  The engineer, Salvatore Lopez, from the Philippines, had collected evidence of the illegal … Continue reading

Pirates Kill Bulk Carrier Captain and Chief Engineer in Gulf of Guinea

Pirate attacks are escalating in the Gulf of Guinea, with tragic consequences. The IMB Piracy Reporting Centre posted on its website that eight armed pirates boarded a drifting bulk carrier, awaiting berthing instructions, on Monday in the Gulf of Guinea, 110 … Continue reading

Bulk Carrier Swanland Sinks off North Wales – Two Crew Rescued & Five Missing

Update: Prince William co-piloted the Sea King helicopter which rescued two crew from the sinking Swanland.   Prince William serves with RAF Valley in north Wales. The bulk carrier Swanland is reported to have sunk this morning off north  Wales in heavy … Continue reading

The Scuttling of the MSC Chitra

Last August, we posted about the collision of the containership MSC Chitra and the bulk carrier Khalijia 3 which resulting in the sinking of the Chitra with a significant oil spill, a loss of cargo containers and the blockage of the port of Mumbai for five … Continue reading

Bulker MV Oliva Breaking-up on Nightingale Island, Tristan da Cunha

The Greek-owned 75,000 tonne bulk carrier, MV Oliva ran aground  on March 16th at 04.30, at Spinners Point, on the far north-west promontory of Nightingale Island, a 4 square kilometer island in the Tristan da Cunha archipelago in the South Atlantic.   … Continue reading

Update: Disabled bulker MV Golden Seas under tow to Dutch Harbor

MV Golden Seas, a 74,475 DWT  bulk carrier, which suffered a turbocharger failure on its main engines and was in danger of drifting onto the Aleutian Islands, has been taken under tow by the tug/supply boat Tor Viking II.   The bulk carrier is … Continue reading

The Sinking of the MSC Chitra: Port Re-opens while the Finger-pointing Intensifies

The containership MSC Chitra and the bulk carrier Khalijia 3 collided near Mumbai, India on Saturday, resulting in the sinking of the  MSC Chitra, a significant oil spill and the loss of at least 200 containers in the ship channel which … Continue reading