A man was injured on board the "Utopia of the Seas" off the coast of Belle-Île-en-Mer on May 11, 2024. At 4.21 p.m., emergency services were alerted to assist the injured worker on the new cruise ship off the coast of South Brittany. The ship, which was built at Chantiers de l'Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire, has been undergoing sea trials since May 7 to start cruises this summer. The CROSS Etel coordinated the response, and a Dragon 25 helicopter hoisted the injured person, who was dropped off at the Vannes hospital center at 6:33 p.m.
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FD ATHINA
In the morningof May 11, 2024, the Port Authority of Argosaronic was informed by the Master of the 'Flying Dolphin Athina', that after the arrival in the port of Piraeus, en route from the ports of Aegina and Agistrio, there was a vibration on the port side side of the ship. The ship was to run a route from the port of Piraeus to the ports of Aegina and Agistrio, while the passengers were forwarded to their destinations by the company. The Argosaroniko Port Station of the 1st Port Department of the Central Port Authority of Piraeus prohibited the sailing of the ship until the repair of the damage and the presentation of a certificate of class maintenance of class by monitoring classification society.
WARSHIP 4
The USS 'Hershel Williams' ran aground on soft bottom off the coast of Gabon on May 9, 2024. The vessel, assigned to the U.S. 6th Fleet and operating within the U.S. Naval Forces Africa area of operations, ran aground around 1 p.m. GMT shortly after departing from a routine port visit to Libreville. It managed to refloat again by approximately 5 p.m. GMT, taking advantage of the high tide. No injuries or major damage were reported, and the ship remained operational in the Gabon estuary just south of Libreville. The Navy started to conduct a comprehensive additional inspection of the ship to assess any potential damage that may have occurred during the grounding. Concurrently, an investigation into the causes of the incident was underway. The ship was in Gabon for the commencement of Obangame Express 2024, an annual multinational exercise aimed at enhancing maritime domain awareness and law enforcement capabilities, with a focus on exercises like visit, board, search, and seizure. The grounding could have raised questions about the ship’s ability to participate in planned activities, including the testing of a surface drone, though no immediate impact on the exercise schedule was indicated.
CARNIVAL VENEZIA
On May 10, a crew member of the 'Carnival Venecia' went overboard during standard emergency drills which were being conducted on the ship in the port of St. Thomas, Virgin Island. The crew member was not involved in the drill, but was was engaged in maintenance at the hull when he slipped and fell into the water. The officers swiftly responded to the situation and launched a rescue operation. A rescue boat was deployed to reach the man in the water. The crew member was retrieved successfully from the water and boarded the cruise ship with no serious injuries. The cruise ship activities were not disrupted, and the ship continued its voyage to San Juan on May 11.
ABEILLE NORMANDIE
On the night of May 10, the CROSS Gris-Nez was informed that a migrant boat was in difficulty off the coast of Portel and depolyed the 'Abeille Normandie' to assist, which launches its rescue boat to reach the site, where it recovered 36 people. Several people still on board the boat refused the assistance offered by French means and continued their journey under appropriate surveillance. The shipwrecked people were dropped off at the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, where they were taken care of by the shore based rescue services and the border police.