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On Nov 5, 2024, a crew member who was in critical medical condition, was medevaced from the 'Celebrity Edge' off the coast of New South Wales, while the vessel was on a 4-night roundtrip voyage from Sydney to Hobart. The airlift operation was a coordinated effort involving the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. A rescue helicopter, supported by an additional aircraft, was dispatched to ensure the crew member received the necessary medical attention. Report with photo and video; https://www.cruisemummy.co.uk/urgent-medical-airlift-conducted-for-crew-member-on-celebrity-edge-cruise-ship/

The Canary Islands Aeronautical Rescue Coordination Center (ARCC Canarias) carried out a rescue mission, requested by Maritime Rescue (SASEMAR), in which the Air and Space Forces intervened, on Nov 5, 2024. At 3:20 p.m., an HD.21 Super Puma helicopter from the 82nd Group of the Armed Forces of Wing 46, based at the Gando Air Base, was mobilized to medevac a 60-year-old Danish passenger, who was in a serious condition due to peritonitis, aboard "MSC Seaside", which was located approximately 470 kilometres southwest of Gran Canaria. To optimise the mission, a D.4 "VIGMA" aircraft was also activated, which provided information on the winds at high altitude and facilitated the rescue manoeuvre by communicating with the cruise ship. The aircraft guided the helicopter on the course and speed that the ship had to maintain to facilitate the hoisting operation, while the satellite communications capacity (SATCOM) allowed real-time contact to be maintained between the SAR air resources and the ARCC Canarias. Once the passenger was hoisted on board the helicopter, he was taken to the helipad of the Juan Negrín Hospital, where he was picked up by an ambulance from the Canary Islands Emergency Service and taken to the hospital for treatment. The helicopter landed safely at Gando Air Base at 8:00 p.m., completing a total of 4 hours and 20 minutes of flight. Report with photo: https://teldeactualidad.com/art/166079/un-helicoptero-de-gando-rescata-pasajero-en-estado-grave-a-470-km-de-gran-canaria

In the largest commercial operation of its kind in the history of Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah Port has received 28 state-of-the-art Liebherr cranes to start the expansion of the container terminals. The latter was decided through a MoU signed with National Container Terminal on the day the port was officially inaugurated in the presence of the Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman last February. The new cranes include 20 gantry cranes and 8 ship-to-shore (STS) cranes, which are the largest of their kind, with an outreach of 70 m (25 rows) and a safe working load of 65 t. The cranes that were supplied in this deal will join their operational counterparts in the port. They are the largest cranes exported by Liebherr and can serve mega container ships easily and seamlessly.

ICTSI subsidiary ICTSI Americas BV has acquired 100% of the shares of Libra Terminal Rio S.A. (Libra Rio) to run the Terminal de Contêineres 1 (T1Rio) container terminal in the Port of Rio, Brazil. Libra Rio holds the concession rights to operate, manage and develop T1Rio and was acquired by ICTSI from Boreal Empreendimentos e Participações SA. The deal to take over the port container terminal concession was disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange, reported Manila Standard. ICTSI said: “The parties will work to sign a share purchase agreement in due course.” Concession until 2048

A 53 year old crew member of the 'Madre Margarita' had to be urgently medevaced on Nov 2, 2024, 230 kilometers from the Port of Mar del Plata., by a helicopter of the Argentine Naval Prefecture (PNA) as he was suffering from acute coronary syndrome. he national Maritime Authority received a radio communication from the Captain of the fishing vessel after the man was suffering from difficulty breathing, pain in the chest, neck, head and intense sweating. Given this situation, a radio consultation was carried out with a doctor belonging to the Mar del Plata Prefecture, who diagnosed “acute coronary syndrome with respiratory difficulty” and gave the Captain some instructions, including the immediate return to port. After a second radio consultation to determine the evolution of the crew member, the doctor of the Prefecture suggested performing an aeroevacuation, since the man did not show improvement. Thus, a helicopter of the Force took off from the Astor Piazzolla airport with a rescue team from the Mar del Plata Air Station, which intercepted the "Madre Margarita" about 124 nautical miles from the local port. The aircraft was placed over the fishing vessel and the Prefecture personnel carried out the medevac to the airport, where an ambulance was waiting for him. Upon arriving at the destination, the man was sent to the medical unit, which took him to a private hospital in the city for better medical care.

The salvage of the 'Taurus I' has entered its final stage as of Nov 5. After two months, the wreck of the ship, which suffered a fire and subsequently sank in the Buenaventura Bay in 2022, the final stage of the removal has begun. After the refloating of the vessel, the disposal was carried out, under the supervision of the General Maritime Directorate (DIMAR), guaranteeing compliance with current regulations. The General Maritime Directorate, through the Port Captaincy of Buenaventura, has verified that the extraction of the wreck from a depth of, approximately 12 meters. was carried out safely. The salvage operation had started on Aug 28 and was carried out by the Colombian company Servicios Portuarios SAS (SerPort) and the international company Resolve Marine. So far, the process has progressed according to plan and without problems in the towing maneuvers. Underwater inspections, diving and evaluation activities of the vessel's condition have been carried out, as well as the verification of possible remnants of fuel and organic waste, along with an analysis of the seabed. In addition, an extraction plan was implemented that included the transfer of the vessel to a shallower area and its refloating. Following the disposal of the remains, inspections will be carried out to verify its condition and ensure that it is in optimal conditions for safe transit and anchoring in Buenaventura Bay. The General Maritime Directorate will continue to supervise maneuvers at sea to ensure that all activities are carried out safely and in strict compliance with maritime regulations, avoiding any negative impact on the marine environment.

NAMPORT’s new container terminal will be officially inaugurated on 2 August, and normal operations are expected to start on it on 24 August. The new terminal, constructed at a cost of N$4 billion, is expected to increase container handling capacity from the current 355 000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) to up to 1 005 000 TEUs. Firstly, there will be a shutdown on 17 August of container operations in the port to start relocations to the new terminal. The equipment to be relocated include rubber-tired gantries and mobile harbour cranes, while reach stackers, haulers and forklifts will move the containers.

The 300-hectare shipyard of Hanjin Philippines may be taken over by several shipping companies that would transform it into a major global port, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said in a chance interview recently. He said the shipyard could be a sprawling multipurpose mixed-use port facility that would be jointly operated by several players. This, he said, is one of the proposals received by Hanjin creditors for the development of the shipyard after Hanjin Philippines declared bankruptcy early this year. “It’s a good masterplan that has been proposed and it is targeted to be implemented this year,” Lopez said. He declined to name the companies but hinted that these include foreign players. Another source said creditors are in negotiations with an American and a Japanese company. Officially, Hanjin has fully shut down just this month, ending the last of its remaining maintenance operations, sources said. As of this writing, the creditors have not made any official announcement yet regarding the final plans for the shipyard.

The 'Nissos Rhenia' is being repaired at its anchorage since Oct 31. It has activated maritime and ecological safety protocols on Nov 5. The repair works began on Oct 31.  A protocol of action was activated by the National Maritime Authority of Portugal and the Portuguese Navy, which sent the corvette NRP 'António Enes' to the area. Once on scene, the ship contacted the tanker and is currently monitoring navigation in the area, ensuring the safety of other ships in the vicinity. The repairs by a technical team are expected to last  until the end of this week, so it can continue its journey to its port of destination.

On Nov 5, a ferry reported to the CROSS Gris-Nez that it had observed a body adrift off the coast of Calais. The PSP 'Cormoran' was diverted to the scene, and the PSMP 'ESMP 03' of the Calais maritime gendarmerie was also deployed to carry out a search in the area. Early in the afternoon, the 'Cormoran' reported to the CROSS that it had located two bodies adrift in the sea. The two deceased persons were recovered by the PSMP boat and deposited at the quayside in Calais. The bodies were then taken care of by the maritime gendarmerie, and an investigation was opened by the Boulogne-sur-Mer public prosecutor's office.

With further development to its existing solid European products, Ocean Network Express (ONE) has announced the launch of a new direct service, the Indian Ocean Service 3 (IO3), which covers South East India, Mediterranean, and North Europe. The new product will offer new port coverage and boost reliability to a wider range of direct port call options to ONE’s valued customers. It will also further expand ONE’s already comprehensive service offerings and allow its clients to enjoy greater choice while bringing efficiency and additional values to the supply chain. The first sailing of the loop is now expected to start from 26th October 2019. IO3: Indian Ocean Service 3 Rotation: Visakhapatnam – Krishnapatnam – Chennai – Tuticorin – Colombo – Cochin – Damietta – Piraeus – Rotterdam – London Gateway – Hamburg – Antwerp – Le Havre – Damietta – Jeddah – Colombo – Visakhapatnam (Fixed day weekly service, 63-day rotation)

APM Terminals has become the first Peruvian port to introduce a customer platform that logs, streamlines and coordinate General Cargo operations in the port of Callao. During the pilot phase, the platform, which was developed together with maritime and customs agents, enabled users to complete transactions 67% faster and operations were completed 12% faster. APM Terminals Callao invested nearly USD 1 million in the implementation of MOST, a new state-of-the-art platform that can be used by maritime agents, customs agencies and carriers, among others. MOST can be used to register cargo and view real-time information, make online payments and generate authorizations for the loading and unloading of all types of General Cargo, from anywhere, anytime. The platform is a clear milestone in the efficient management of port logistics using world-class technology.