News

On the afternoon of Oct 25, a migrant boat departure was reported to the CROSS Gris-Nez, which deployed the PSP 'Cormoran' to search for the boat in the area off the Walde Lighthouse. Once relocated, the boat was monitored by the 'Cormoran', which launched its operational drome boat (EDO) to make contact with it and continued surveillance for several hours, while the migrant boat entered the Pas-de-Calais traffic separation system without requesting assistance. After hearing screams on the boat, the 'Cormoran' put its drome boat back into the water, which transferred 35 people on board the patrol boat, who were requesting assistance, while several people still on board the boat refused the assistance offered by the French resources. At the same time, the CROSS Gris-Nez broadcast a Mayday Relay and also engaged the French Navy's Dauphin helicopter based in Le Touquet to search for any people in the water. An RNLI) boat and a British Border Force vessel joined the search. The latter picked up the rest of the migrants who had not requested assistance from the 'Cormoran'. After all French and British resources had ensured that no one was in the water, the 'Cormoran' dropped off the 35 people rescued in Calais in the middle of the night.

The "Samsø ", operating between Ballen on Samsø and Kalundborg, allided with the quay in Kalundborg on the morning of Oct 26, 2024. A door for the passengers opened too soon and hit a fender when the ferry was navigating to its berth. The door got hold of the fender and was almost ripped off. Craftsmen had to be brought in and worked on fixing hinges and other things. Then the monitoring classification society had to approve that it was safe to sail on, and the same had to be done by the Danish Maritime Authority. Finally the ferry could sail from Kalundborg towards Ballen at around 4.45 p.m. A few sailings had been canceled and the rest delayed. The ship was expected to sail as scheduled on Oct 27.

Several departures of migrant boats were reported to the CROSS Gris-Nez on Oct 25. During the night, the 'Abeille Normandie' was tasked to check the situation in the Audresselles sector, where a boat was monitored by the tug until it broke down and the people on board requested assistance. The 'Abeille Normandie' then launched its zodiac and picked up 68 people, who were then dropped off at the quay in Boulogne-sur-Mer n the middle of the night. The tug was then again engaged by the CROSS Gris-Nez after another boat departure was reported in the same Audresselles sector. The CROSS Gris-Nez also engaged the P-68 "Action Air Environnement" police aircraft, the VCSM 'Aber Ildut' and a Dauphin helicopter. A person was picked up by the semi-rigid boat of the 'Abeille Normandie' from the water and then transferred to the 'Aber Ildut' and dropped off at the quayside in Boulogne-sur-Mer.. The rest of the people refused the assistance offered by the French means and continued on their way. After the boat was located in the Hardelot sector, the 'Drôme' was launched which picked up a person in the water and another migrant requesting assistance on the boat. At the same time, the CROSS also deploys the French Navy's public service Dauphin helicopter based in Le Touquet to ensure that no one was still in difficulty in the water. The tug then picked up the VCSM 'Aber Ildut' off Le Portel, where another boat was reported. Given the number of migrants waiting on the beaches or in the water to board the boat, the CROSS also used the Dauphin helicopter to search for possible people at sea. Eight people who were unable to reach the boat from the shore were picked up by the boat of the 'Abeille Normandie' and then dropped off at Boulogne-sur-Mer in the afternoon. They were joined at the quayside by the two people previously picked up and transferred to the quayside too.

Th 'Mystic' struck rocks in the Cape Cod Canal on Oct 24, 2024, shortly after 2 p.m. on the mainland side by the Bourne Bridge. No injuries were reported. The US Army Corps of Engineers was investigating the incident. The U.S. Coast Guard was the lead investigating authority for the pilot vessel. Fuel and other pollutants have been mitigated. A tow truck attached lines to keep the pilot vessel stabilized on the ebb tide. It was expected to be removed later pending any delays in operations.

On the morning of Oct 25, 2024, the 'Hermanos Brull Vila" requested to be towed to port, after suffering a mechanical breakdown about 15 nautical miles from the green line of Tarragona. The 'Salvamar Fomalhaut' was tasked to assist by Salvamento Marítimo and has towed it to Cambrils.