The fire on board of MSC Flaminia is growing and now includes 1200 TEU from the cargo on board. The salvage operations of the large container ship, which exploded in the mid Atlantic, started a few days ago, but the firefighting tugs are still no able to get control of the fire. The ship MSC Flaminia is drifting with 8.2 degrees heel to starboard, due to the burning containers and fire fighting equipment on board. On the scene of the accident now there are 3 tugs - Fairmount Expedition, Anglian Sovereign and Carlo Mango, which deluge the fire with water. On board of the container ship were boarded also 4 people, who are trying to re-activate the firefighting system of MSC Flaminia and also boarded additional equipment. The salvage operations are head by SMIT company, which has open agreement for the rescue operations of the container ship. According to information from them, the superstructure, stern and bridge are no affected by the fire, but now more than…
Explosion and fire on offshore supply vessel in Nigeria caused death of 30 people
Explosion and fire started on board of offshore supply vessel in Abuloma Jetty in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. The explosion was heavy, without any warning from the firefighting system and caused the death of more than 30 people. All the crew members and some guests on board were killed after the explosion and fire. Only 3 people survived after the accident, but they are really highly injured and were transported in the local hospital. The explosion was caused by short circuit during maintenance works in Abuloma Jetty in Port Harcourt, while the ship was berthed. On board of the vessel there were a lot of girls from the local city, who were making company so the offshore workers.
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Biostar ship ran aground in Norway
The Norwegian general cargo ship Biostar ran aground in North sea. The accident happened western off Vibransoy island in Haugesund, Norway. The ship was operating in the region, fully loaded with cargo, when due to navigation mistake of the duty officer ran agound in mud bank of Vibransoy island. The vessel was not able to refloat by itself, but with the support of a harbor tug was towed to safety. The general cargo ship Biostar returned to the closest port, where an inspection found several damages to the hull, stern, bow and rudder. The ship was kept in the port for repair and maintenance after the collision. The vessel is is good condition, in spite of the several damages, which has in the accident. There are no injured people and no pollution in the scene of the collision.
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Tug and barge sank in Lake Huron
The barge Arthur J sank in Lake Huron, capesizing the tugboat Madison. the both vessels were operating on 5 nautical miles off the entrance to the St Clair River. Both vessel has total about 7.0 tons of fuel and a small volume of luboil, so the local authorities made special construction to restrict the spillage and the water pollution. The both ships are operated and owned by the US company MCM Marine Inc and the reason for the accident is still unknown. According to the Coast Guard, the ships sank due to engineering problem in the dredge barge. The vessel's hull broke and while sinking capesized the towing tug Madison. The accident happened close to the shore and there were no serious injured people, but the water pollution might cause serious problem to the Lake Huron eco-system.
MSC Flaminia salvage operations started
Towing and salvage tugs arrived on the position of the explosion of the container ship MSC Flaminia and started the operations for fire fighting and rescue of the large vessel. Meanwhile, second explosion on board of the MSC Flaminia was reported by the salvage tugs, which was seen from the burning cargo hold. According to the latest information neither the superstructure, not the engine room and bridge were directly affected by the fire on board, so the rescuers are highly optimistic that the fire will be extinguished and the ship will be saved. The plan for the rescue of the ship include boarding of engineer on MSC Flaminia, who should re-activate the fire fighting system on board and with the support of the tug to extinguish the fire on board and to get the control of the vessel. The salvage operation is still not started and the container vessel is drifting to European coast about 1000 nautical miles off.
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Skagit ferry capesized off Zanzibar
More than 100 people are missing, when the ferry Skagit capsized on route between Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania and Zanzibar with 281 passengers on board. The rescue boats and helicopters saved more than 150 people with slight injuries and recovered 25 bodies in the waters of Indian Ocean. The local authorities report that more than 100 people are still missing and the search and rescue operations were not able to find them. The accident happened, when strong winds and waves hit the board of the ferry and the got a water ingress into the compartments. The ship Skagit lost stability and capesized with all the people on board. According to the witness evidences the passengers and the crew had no time for reaction, as the ship sank for a minutes. The local authorities continue the search and rescue operations in spite of the bad weather and heavy sea.
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US Navy ship fired on Indian fishing boat
US navy cargo ship fired to an Indian fishing boat in the Persian Gulf, due to concerns for piracy. The ship Rappahannock, which refuels US Navy ship in the region, passed though the Strait of Hormuz, when a boat enclosed to the ship and disregarded warnings from the vessel. The ship Rappahannock fired with 50-milimeter machine gun to the boat, killing one of the people on board. The accident happened 10 miles off the Dubai's Jebel Ali port, while the ship was passing though the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. The local authorities and Naval Criminal Investigative Service are engaged with investigation of the accident and searching for the reason for the fire. The US navy cargo ship Rappahannock was loaded with fuel oil, when the accident happened, which most probably the main reason for the premature fire. On board of the fishing boat was not found any weapons and arms, but the region is very dangerous for shipping, as almost every day some cargo shi…
One person died during fire on General Cargo ship
The general cargo ship Brielle caught fire, while being on berth in Ensenada port in La Plata, Argentina. The cargo ship was moored and has cargo operations, when a cargo broke our in one of the cargo holds. One crew member died during the accident and six more people are seriously injured. The firefighters needed more than six hours to extinguish the fire on board of cargo ship Brielle. The general cargo ship has 13 crew members, who were from Russian, Ukrainian and Filipino nations. The died person is still unknown, as the authorities do not specify even the nationality of the man. The cargo ship Brielle suffered sufficient damaged in the hull and superstructure, during the fire. Engaged with the fire fighting were two tugs and the shore command with full equipment. The port authorities are still investigating the reason for the fire on board, as still it is unknown if it was started by human mistake or engineering failure.
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MSC Flaminia is still on fire in mid Atlantic
The fire, which started on 14th July 2012 in the cargo holds of MSC Flaminia is still not extinguished. The container ship is drifting in the mid Atlantic and billowing thick smoke, which is seen from the passing cargo ships in the vicinity. All the crew members left the ship, after the explosion on board and the ship is not under control, such as the fire on board. The Falmouth Coastguard sent two fire fighting tugs at the scene of the accident, but their ETA is the afternoon of 17th July 2012. The coastguard and the UK authorities have no other possible actions, as they reported that no investigation can be held before the fire is extinguished and the specialists inspect and check the place of the explosion. The crew members of MSC Flaminia commented that the fire started in cargo hold number 4, where were loaded some containers with combustible bleaching agent calcium hypochlorite.
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Fire on Crown Princess cruise ship in Ionian sea
The luxury cruise ship Crown Princess was caught on fire on 3 nautical miles Eastern of Antipaxos island. The fire started in one of the passenger cabins and was automatically extinguished by the fire fighting system. The accident happened in Ionian sea, during a cruise between the ports Corfu and Piraeus. The cruise ship Crown Princess suffered slight damages and after inspection of the Katakolo port authorities, Crown Princess continued the voyage to the final destination. The vessel was operating on cruise with 3325 passengers on board and none of them are injured. The reason for the fire was wrong usage of electrical tools in the cabin by one of the guests.
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