The Swedish intelligence service has seized the 'Vezhen', en route from the Russian port of Ust-Luga towards Denmark, which is suspected of being behind a sabotage against an undersea fiber optic cable between Latvia and Sweden in the Baltic Sea, which occurred on Jan 26, 2025, and in which at least one underwater data cable between the island of Gotland and Latvia was damaged. The ship had crossed the cable at at 12.45 a.m. The Latvian radio and television company LVRTC, which owns the cable, described the damage as serious. The Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stated that he had been in close contact with the Latvian Prime Minister during the course of the day. The Swedish prosecutor's office said that a number of investigative steps were now being taken, which they would not specify in more detail for the sake of the investigation. The Swedish Coast Guard, the Swedish Defence Force and the police were among those working on the suspected espionage. The ship changed course on Jan 26 and sailed towards Karlskrona, where it moored off Hasslö and Aspö in the Karlskrona archipelago in pos. 56° 04' N 015° 31' E with a ship from the Swedish Coast Guard nearby. Late on the evening, the Coast Guard boarded the ship. The Latvian cable operator stated on Sunday that the damage to the cable was probably due to "external influence". The 'Vezhen' is operated by the Bulgarian company Navigation Maritime Bulgare. Reports with video: https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/europa/unterseekabel-lettland-schweden-102.html https://www.tv4.se/artikel/4EMMULmnbDrkDACHRx7gNT/tv4-pa-plats-vid-fartyget-ser-att-det-har-skador-pa-ankaret
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FLOATING BRIDGE 6
On Jan 27, 2025, the 'Floating Bridge 6' had to halt crossings on the s the River Medina between Cowes and East Cowes for 48 hours due to a battery fault. The chain ferry was taken out of operation after Marine Electricians identified the issue. It needed four new batteries. It was hoped it would be returning to full service in the next 48 hours. A launch service for pedestrians and cyclists was in operation during this time.
VEZHEN
The Bulgarian Embassy in Stockholm is in contact with the relevant Swedish authorities and is actively following the development of the 'Vezhen' case. This was announced by the BTA Foreign Ministry on the occasion of the information from the Swedish Prosecutor's Office about the detention of the "Vezhen" in the Baltic Sea and the initiation of a preliminary investigation into suspected sabotage. "It is possible that the" Vezhen "caused the damage to the cable, but I personally do not assume that this was sabotage on the part of our crew," said the Executive Director of the shipping company "Navigation Maritime Bulgare", Captain Alexandar Kaltchev. He explained that on the evening of Jan 25, the ship was sailing in extremely bad weather with southwest winds of more than 25 meters per second. On the morning, when the wind died down, the crew inspected the ship for damage and found that the port side anchor was damaged and had apparently been dragged along the seabed. Kalchev stressed that even if the ship caused the damage to the data cable, it was not intentional or "sabotage".
NORTHERN ENDURANCE
The 'Northern Endurance'' was partially beached about three miles from downtown Unalaska, near Little Priest Rock in Iliuliuk Bay on Jan 23, 2025. The ship was pulled free by the emergency response and salvage company Resolve Marine on Jan 24 at around 9 a.m. and was docked at Resolve Marine near Unalaska’s spit. Ualaska's U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit was investigating the fishing vessel as a routine process. Initially the City of Unalaska Fire Department had responded to the incident on the afternoon of Jan 24, before handing operations over to the local Coast Guard team. The captain confirmed there were no injuries to crew members aboard, as well as no additional hazardous conditions. Report with photo: https://www.kucb.org/industry/2025-01-24/fishing-vessel-pulled-free-from-rocks-coast-guard-begins-investigation
SEA PUNK 1
A migrant boat that capsized in Malta's Search and Rescue zone claimed the lives of two children, while 17 others were rescued by the 'Sea Punk 1' on Jan 26, 2025, including a pregnant woman and a critically injured man. The ship's medical team performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on two other children, successfully saving one. Two persons were still believed to be missing at sea. The rescue occurred on the early morning within Malta's Search and Rescue (SAR) zone. A Maltese SAR helicopter airlifted the pregnant woman and the severely injured man, while an Italian Coastguard vessel took on board the remaining 15 survivors and recovered the bodies of the two children. Survivors recounted that the boat originally carried 21 people from Cameroon and Nigeria. The bodies of the deceased were taken to the mortuary chamber in Cala Pisana. The parents of the two toddlers were among the survivors.