American Archeologist Dies in Reenactment of Viking Voyage

A crew of 6 adventurers set sail on a 500-nautical-mile voyage in the North Sea from Tvøroyri on the Faroe Islands bound for Trondheim, Norway aboard Naddoddur, a 33′ long Faroese Viking ship replica. The voyage, expected to take 3-5 … Continue reading

Hurtigruten’s MS Maud Damaged by Rogue Wave in North Sea Storm — Under Tow to Germany

The cruise ship MS Maud was returning to the UK from a 14 night Northern Lights cruise when it was caught in a severe storm in the North Sea. During the storm, the ship was struck by a rogue wave, … Continue reading

Update: Sailing Past the Future Stad Ship Tunnel on MS Trollfjord

This afternoon, sailing south from Ålesund bound for Haugesund, on Hurtigruten’s MS Trollfjord, I noticed something unusual. The ship was pitching and rolling. The motion was gentle but evident. On the previous twelve or so days of the voyage to … Continue reading

Car Carrier Fremantle Highway Catches Fire in North Sea Off Dutch Coast, One Crew Member Killed

Near midnight on Tuesday, the car carrier Fremantle Highway, loaded with nearly 3,000 cars, caught fire and has been burning out of control off the Dutch island of Ameland. The Dutch coast guard said one crew member had died and … Continue reading

Wind Turbine One, Cargo Ship Zero — Off Course General Cargo Ship Allides With Wind Farm

We missed this story the first time around, but it seems worthwhile to mention it, all the same. For what is being referred to as the first time it has occurred, a merchant ship had an allision with a wind … Continue reading

Five Dead, Six Missing After Car Carrier Baltic Ace Sinks in Collision

Following the sinking last night of the car carrier Baltic Ace, the bodies of five sailors have been recovered.  Six of the crew are missing and presumed dead in the icy waters of the North Sea. The 485-foot long Bahamain-flagged   car … Continue reading

Bombs in the Baltic – Two Hurt by WWII Phosphorus on German Shoreline

World War II ended in Europe on May 8, 1945. Nevertheless, over 60 years later, the threat from left over munitions continues and may be getting worse.  Last November, we posted about bombs along the Rhine, where a drought was revealing un-exploded ordinance in German river banks.  Then … Continue reading

Major Gas Leak at Total Elgin Platform in the North Sea – Why it Matters

The Elgin platform in the North Sea, 150 miles (240km) off Aberdeen, suffered a serious natural gas on Sunday.   It is expected at take several weeks, in the best case scenario, to shut off the leak. Some estimates suggest that it will take 6 months … Continue reading

Yet Another Reason Not to Smoke – Woman Falls Off Ferry While Lighting her Cigarette

A 23 year old woman reportedly fell overboard into the North Sea just after 8.30pm on Monday night from the Princess Seaways DFDS ferry bound from from Newcastle to Ijmuiden. The woman was reportedly lighting a cigarette at the rail … Continue reading

Collision between Greek tanker Mindoro and Cypriot container ship Jork Ranger

This morning around 4:56 UTC the Cypriot container ship Jork Ranger collided with the Greek tanker Mindoro, carrying  jet fuel off the Scheveningen coast in the North Sea.  The collision caused a fuel spill from a five-meter wide puncture in the … Continue reading