News

A passenger and a crew member of the ‘Regal Princess’, which stopped at the Port of Funchal on Oct 13, were admitted to a hospital in the Madeiran capital for health reasons. The two individuals had been monitored by the ship’s clinical team before disembarking at the Funchal port, with pre-hospital assistance on land, which was the responsibility of the Portuguese Red Cross, being carried out at different times. The first evacuation took place at 8:00 a.m. and involved a passenger with heart problems, who was taken to the Private Hospital of Madeira. The second case concerned a crew member about 1,5 hours later, due to the worsening of his health condition, which was affected by gastric problems. Both were admitted to the emergency department of the hospital. The cruise ship, which arrived in Funchal shortly after 6:00 a.m., left the port at around 6:00 p.m., heading for the island of Antigua. The vessel had’ docked in the portfor a ten-hour stopover from Cobh, carrying 4,724 people, among them 3,388 passengers and 1,336 crew members.

The US Coast Guard medevaced a 63-year-old man experiencing severe abdominal pain from the 'Grand Princess' off Los Angeles, on the afternoon of Oct 13, 2024. Watchstanders from the Coast Guard District Eleven Command Center received the medevac request at approximately 1:00 a.m. on Oct 12. The cruise ship was put on a communications schedule until they were within range for an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Ventura to conduct a hoist. The Jayhawk aircrew conducted the hoist the following afternoon at approximately 2:30 p.m. with an Coast Guard Air Station Sacramento C-27 Spartan aircrew providing overflight support.The patient was transferred to awaiting emergency medical personnel at Torrance Memorial Medical Center in Torrance, California. Report with photos: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/3934649/coast-guard-air-station-ventura-conducts-first-rescue-medevacs-man-offshore-los/

A 48-year-old crew member of Indonesian origin died after falling ill aboard the 'Paramita', which was anchored at Hazira, on Oct 13, 2024. The captain noticed Yuli Bagus Prasetyo lying unconscious at about 5.30 p.m. He called the local shipping agent, Himani Shipping, and their employee, Denish Panwala, transported Yuli to the BAPS Hospital in Adajan. However, the doctor on duty declared him brought dead at about 7 p.m. Subsequently, his body was taken to Civil Hospital for a post mortem and other formalities. Primary reports suggest he died of natural causes. The Hazira police have registered an accidental death case and launched an investigation.

The hipbuilding company Ferguson Marine has declared the trials of the delayed and over-budget 'Glen Sannox' an overall success. The vessel completed several sea acceptance trials after construction was completed at the Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow, Inverclyde. The Ferguson Marine wrote to Sir Edward Mountain, Conservative MSP and convenor of the Scottish Parliament's Net Zero, Energy and Transport (NZET) committee, on Oct 11 and stated that the sea trials conducted between Oct 8 and Oct 10 had proceeded as planned. John Pettigrew, the interim CEO of the shipbuilder, sent the letter which detailed that the trials included tests for the ship's steering and manoeuvring, speed, stopping, thrusters, noise and vibration. Tests were also carried out for Unmanned Machinery Space (UMS) and endurance. The yard has fully resolved the setup of the fire and gas detection system. Two successful LNG (liquified natural gas) bunkerings were also carried out, and the LNG tank level alarms were tested and approved on Oct 12. The shipbuilders have committed to providing the NZET committee with a handover date once it is confirmed, though further work was ongoing.

The 'Libra' with the first group of 16 migrants on board has set off from Lampedusa for Albania on Oct 14, 2024. The migrants are shipped to new migrant centers in Albania, where they will be held pending a decision on asylum. 10 of them are from Bangladesh and six Egyptians. The 'Libra' was expected to arrive at the port of Shengjin on Oct 16 at around 8:00 a.m. The 16 adult males, intercepted in international waters south of Lampedusa, were to undergo accelerated border procedures then. International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UNHCR refugee protection personnel are also traveling on the 'Libra'. The men will first be identified and undergo health screening. They will be transferred later in the day to the other 'Italian' site in Gjader, about 20 kilometers inland, where they will await the outcome of their request for international protection in the Center for asylum seekers. A Rome court will then have to decide on the validation of a detention warrant issued by the capital's police headquarters. Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama and Italy's Giorgia Meloni signed the agreement on Italian migration management in November 2023. The agreement is valid for five years and costs Italy around 160 million euros annually. The agreement has been criticized by human rights organisations, but has also aroused great curiosity among other EU countries.