News

When a tanker truck was supplying the 'Elly' at the Oldenburg dam, an overflow"occurred via the tank ventilation of the vessel in the area of ​​the bow. Around 100 liters of diesel fuel leaked out. This spread over the gangway. Around 30 liters got into the water and contaminated the surface for at least one kilometer across the entire width of the Hunte river. The lock to the coastal canal and the Hunte shipping lane were closed to shipping traffic at 1:42 p.m. by the Bremen traffic control center, as oil booms had to be laid across the entire width of the Hunte at the level of the railway bridge and the agricultural trade pier. The on-call judge ordered the master to provide security as part of criminal proceedings relating to an environmental offense. He had incorrectly estimated the tank capacity. The vessel was banned from sailing due to significant technical defects by the investigating officials. Report with photo: https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/niedersachsen/oldenburg_ostfriesland/Binnenschiffer-tankt-100-Liter-zu-viel-Diesel-fliesst-in-Hunte,aktuelloldenburg17842.html

Beached at Alang 16.01.25

The 'Joseph Doyle' repatriated 58 people to the Dominican Republic on Jan 15, 2025, following the interdiction of two vessels near Puerto Rico. Four of the interdicted migrants remained in U.S. custody and were facing possible federal prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico on charges of attempting to illegally re‑enter the United States in violation of Title 8, U.S.C., Section 1326, and failure to heave in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Section 2237. The first interdiction occurred on the morning of Jan 13, after a Customs and Border Protection Caribbean Air and Marine Branch crew on a routine patrol detected a 25-foot makeshift vessel in waters southwest of Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. Sector San Juan watchstanders diverted the Coast Guard Cutter 'Joseph Tezanos' to respond. Shortly thereafter, it arrived on-scene and deployed the Over the Horizon Boat which stopped the compliant suspect vessel. While the 'Joseph Tezanos' was in the process of disembarking the migrants, the boat crew reported that three people, who had remained aboard the makeshift vessel, re‑energized the vessel engines, and attempted to flee the scene with several migrants who had not yet been disembarked from the boat. The Coast Guard crew reestablished pursuit and successfully stopped the suspect vessel. Following the interdiction, the 'Joseph Tezanos' embarked all 41 migrants, 21 of whom claimed to be Dominican Republic nationals and 20 to be Haitian nationals. The second interdiction occurred the afternoon of Jan 13, after a Customs and Border Protection Caribbean Air and Marine Branch crew on a routine patrol detected a 30-foot makeshift boat northwest of Aguadilla. Sector San Juan watchstanders diverted the 'Joseph Tezanos' to respond. Shortly thereafter, it arrived on-scene and deployed the Over the Horizon Boat to stop the migrant boat. The operator refused to stop and conducted aggressive evasive maneuvers to flee the area. The boat crew successfully stopped the suspect vessel. Following the interdiction, the crew embarked 21 migrants, 17 of whom claimed to be Dominican Republic nationals and four to be Haitian nationals. The 'Joseph Doyle' repatriated the migrants from both cases to San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, on Jan 15, where they were received by Dominican Republic Navy authorities. Meanwhile, the migrants facing prosecution were transferred to U.S. Ramey Sector Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigations agents in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. Report with photo: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4032184/coast-guard-returns-58-migrants-to-dominican-republic-following-maritime-interd/

On the night of Jan 16, two canoes arrived on their own in Tenerife with 37 and 50 people on board respectively. The captains of the 'Salvamar Adhara' and 'Salvamar Acrux' notified the control center. In Las Palmas, the 'Salvamar Macondo' rescued 50 migrants aboard a canoe on the morning of Jan 16 and transferred them to Arguineguín. The response was coordinated by the CCS Las Palmas of Salvamento Marítimo. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1880172490221125709

The 'Vasiliy Shuksin' loitered above undersea communication cables in the Pacific for weeks, as concerns were growing over potential Russian sabotage. The vessel had left the port of Vostochnyy on Dec 8, 2024, and stopped for a short period of time in South Korea, before it loitered off Taiwan's coast on Dec 19 amid growing fears among NATO members that the Russian President Vladimir Putin could target underwater cables and critical infrastructure that are vital to global communication systems. The vessel was aimlessly criss-crossing the area near Taiwan's Fangshan undersea cable landing station for 3,5 weeks for no apparent reason, before returning to Russia on the morning of Jan 14. The Taiwan Coastguard continued to monitor the situation.The vessel began its return to Russia a day after Ray Powell, director of the Stanford University-affiliated maritime analyst group SeaLight, initially raised the alarm about its activities. The ship, however, did not head southward to Vietnam as it previously self-reported, but straight back north to its home port of Vostochnyy. It has sailed 3,000 kilometers to loiter off southwest Taiwan for 3.5 weeks, without seeking to enter any Taiwan port and for no apparent reason, before returning to Russia. Report with photos: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/a-russian-ship-loitered-over-undersea-cables-for-weeks-in-the-pacific-what-it-means-7477149

The 'Life Star' has been detained in the port of Fos-sur-mèr by the Dirm Méditerranée ship security center on Jan 14, 2025. The deficiencies noted by the Port State Control inspectors were not known at this stage. The vessel, which arrived in Fos on Jan 13 from the Lebanese port of Chekka, is moored at Fluxel berth 0, which accommodates small oil tankers.

The 'Eiltank 4', en route from Rotterdam, suffered an engine failure on the Waal near Brakel on the evening of Jan 15, 2025, and ran aground at a groyne. There were no injuries no leaks reported. The Brakel fire brigade, which tried to get as close to the ship as possible with a fire engine, saw their attempt fail because the own vehicle got stuck in the marshy meadow. A tractor had to be used to free it from the mud. The fire boat 'De Batouwe' arrived on the scene shortly afterwards to provide assistance. On the morning of Jan 16, the container barge 'Mellizo' (MMSI: 244630034), en route from Ludwigshafen, was tasked to assist and managed to pull the tanker off shortly before 11 a.m. Rijkswaterstaat escorted the ship with the patrol boats 'RWS 71' (MMSI: 245207000) and 'RWS 43' (MMSI: 244070618), the police with the launch 'P 98' (MMSI: 244615807). Because the tanker was outside the fairway, other ship traffic was not affected much by the incident. Shipping traffic was temporarily halted during the salvage work. The ship berthed in Dordrecht after having been refloated. Report with photo: https://www.digitaalburg.com/rn02/tanker-met-motorpech-loopt-vast-op-de-waal-bij-brakel/

Beached at Chittagong 15.01.25 https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=2244348392613510&set=gm.10164210926518943&idorvanity=6884293942

On Jan 16, 2025, at 01:02 a.m. the 'Eco Levant', en route from Antwerp towards Kiel, suffered an engine failure during the eastbound transit of the Kiel Canal and veered off course at Breiholz. The ship got sutck on the northern embankment near the pilot station in Rüstersbergen (Lat. 54.2386 Lng. 9.6088). The tug 'Holtenau' (IMO: 8200321) was mobilized from Kiel before 2 a.m, and the tug 'Fairplay 66' (IMO: 9036258) left Brunsbüttel at around 4 a.m. UTC, but could be stood down once the ship was floating again and returned to its base. The canal was completely closed after the grounding and the canal authority was not even letting any ships enter. 20 ships were affected during their canal transit and stopped their respective voyages on both sides of the incident site. At 8 a.m. the 'Eco Levant' could be refloated by the 'Holtenau' and berthed in the heavy load port of Rendsburg-Osterrönfeld at 9.20 a.m., where officers of the water police boarded the ship for further investigations. It continued the voyage the same night at 10 p.m. after repairs to the technical defect of the hydraulic system and the re-confirmation of its class by the monitoring classification society DNVGL with an ETA at the port of destination as of Jan 19. Reports, photos and video: https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/schleswig-holstein/NOK-Containerschiff-bei-Breiholz-in-Boeschung-gelaufen,containerschiff560.html https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/regional/schleswigholstein/ndr-nok-containerschiff-bei-breiholz-in-boeschung-gelaufen-100.html https://lomazoma.com/nord-ostsee-kanal-schiff-in-uferboeschung-getrieben/ https://www.mopo.de/im-norden/schleswig-holstein/havarie-im-norden-containerriese-stellt-sich-auf-kanal-quer-vollsperrung/ https://www.shipspotting.com/photos/3799247?navList=gallery&category=39&page=1&viewType=normal&sortBy=newest https://www.shipspotting.com/photos/3799246?navList=gallery&category=39&page=1&viewType=normal&sortBy=newest

The 'Victory' rescued two fishermen after their vessel 'Tanusha' had capsized near Kodiak on the afternoon of Jan 15, 2025. Watchstanders at the 17th Coast Guard District Command Center received a distress alert from the fishing vessel ’s emergency position indicating radio beacon at 9:48 a.m. They directed the launch of a helicopter from the Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak and requested assistance from the Alaska State Troopers. The watchstanders also made attempts to contact vessels near the location of the distress signal via radio. The 'Victory' received the request for assistance and navigated towards the 'Tanusha'’s last known location. The crew of the 'Victory' located the 'Tanusha' capsized, and two fishermen in a life raft. A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew hoisted the two fishermen with the help of the Alaska State Trooper vessel 'Stimson', and transported them to awaiting emergency medical services personnel in Kodiak in stable condition. One crew member showed signs of hypothermia and had a head injury. The fishermen had abandoned ship when it began taking on water approximately 23 miles southeast of Kodiak. Report with video: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4031830/coast-guard-others-rescue-2-fishermen-near-kodiak-alaska/

On the night of Jan 16, two canoes arrived on their own in Tenerife with 37 and 50 people on board respectively. The captains of the 'Salvamar Adhara' and 'Salvamar Acrux' notified the control center. In Las Palmas, the 'Salvamar Macondo' rescued 50 migrants aboard a canoe on the morning of Jan 16 and transferred them to Arguineguín. The response was coordinated by the CCS Las Palmas of Salvamento Marítimo. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1880172490221125709

During the forenoon of Jan15, the 'Yantar' arrived in a position 40 nautical miles north of Oran, Algeria, and 216 nautical miles east of Gibraltar, which corresponds with the location where on Dec 24, 2024, the Russian cargom/v 'Ursa Major' sank after an alleged explosion in her engine room that might have taken place on Dec 23. The presence of the spy ship at the wreckage sitewas raising questions on the Russian intentions. The Yantar is a Project 22010 special purpose intelligence collection vessel that is in service with Russia’s Ministry of Defense Main Directorate of Deep Water Research (GUGI) and is suspected of detecting and mapping critical Western and NATO underwater infrastructure in the Baltic and North Seas. The vessel entered the Mediterranean on Nov 25 via the Strait of Gibraltar. It then called at Algiers, most likely resupplying itself before starting its operations in the Mediterranean. This procedure is common for Russian military vessels arriving in the Mediterranean without an escorting supply ship to provide them of fuel, water and food. The 'Yantar' was last observed back at Algiers between Jan 11 and 14. During this period the Russian Rear Admiral Konovalov was photographed at a reception together with the Algerian Navy Brigadier-General who is in charge of the 1st Military District based at Algiers. Rear Admiral Konovalov is known to be the commander of the 29th Special Purpose Submarine Brigade, a unit that operates special submersible craft for GUGI. The presence of such a high ranking military member on board of the 'Yantar' was raising questions on what exactly the vessel is trying to investigate at the sinking site. The issue appears to be important enough to have Rear Admiral Konovalov, be present on board of the 'Yantar' to oversee the operations. The presence of such a high ranking officer suggest that the 'Yantar'’s operations are probably ordered high up in Russia’s political decision making processes. The 'Ursa Major' was a known weapon runner which frequently transported military equipment and ammunition between Russia and Syria. However, during her last trip, the vessel was heading from St. Petersburg towards Vladivostok via the Suez Canal. The vessel was transporting two 45-ton hatches intended to be installed on Russia’s Project 10510 nuclear-powered icebreaker 'Rossiya', which is under construction at the Zvezda shipyard in Bolshoy Kamen near Vladivostok. Also present on the deck of the 'Ursa Major' were two large cranes intended for use in the port of Vladivostok These cranes were part of Russia’s ongoing development of port facilities along the Northern Sea Route. The sinking of the 'Ursa Major' took place in a period where several older Russian cargo vessels were experiencing technical and mechanical breakdowns. Prior to the 'Ursa Major', the 'Sparta', that was traveling together with the 'Ursa Major', developed problems with her engines while the vessel was near Brest on Dec 17. The 'Yantar' could be conducting a thorough investigation of the wreckage in order to determine the cause of the explosions in the engine room. It can also aid in the destruction of sensitive materials as the 'Ursa Major' was known to have smuggled weapons in the past and possible evidence might still be on board of the vessel. Another theory is that the 'Yantar' may be trying to recover the 45-ton hatches intended for the 'Rossiya'. Heavy metal work for the construction of the icebreaker was originally subcontracted to a firm in Ukraine. However, as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the company’s facilities were damaged and the heavy metalwork was re-contracted to a Russian firm. With Russia’s economy already under pressure as a result of Western sanctions and an increase demand on military spending, recovering these hatches might possible result in avoiding additional rework, cost overruns and delays on the construction of the icebreaker. Report with photo: https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2025/01/russian-ship-sinking-spy-ship-yantar-diving-on-wreck/

The customs inspection of the "Eventin" off the port of Sassnitz may take days. The inspection of the cargo and the relevant documents was underway as ofJan 16. How long this will last is not yet foreseeable. The customs did not provide any information on Thursday as to whether there is any cargo on board the tanker that is subject to sanctions. No interim results will be announced while the customs inspection is still ongoing. The ship is therefore not allowed to continue sailing until then. The main engine is now running again. Regardless of the customs measures, the "Eventin" is also subject to a temporary sailing ban imposed by the authorities responsible for ship safety. According to the Federal Ministry of Transport, this applies until the question of whether the ship is technically capable of leaving the Baltic Sea under its own power has been clarified. This will be checked by experts from an international classification society.

Preparations are being made in Heikendorf in the Kiel Fjord to raise the sunken German f/v 'Kulle Christoph-SK 30, 12,26 gt (CS: DWIR).. The "Noorman", a multifunctional salvage ship from the My Captain company in Kiel, arrived in the port from its previous location in Stralsund on the evening of Jan 15, 2025. In order to stabilize the 23-meter-long salvage ship with a crane on deck in Möltenort harbor, the tug "Seelöwe", which is moored at the jetty next to the sunken cutter, is supporting the operation. The dive company Unterwasserkrause Mutzeck GmbH from Schellhorn sent divers into the basin. Their task: to attach the cutter to the traverse of the salvage ship with ropes. The ITT-Port Consult GmbH is supervising the operation on site on behalf of the Heikendorf municipal utility company (GWH). The wreck will be be lifted piece by piece, with water being pumped out of the hull every now and then. The Heikendorf municipal utility company is the owner of the Möltenort port. Because the owner of the cutter is insolvent and has stopped looking after his boat, the GWH is obliged to take care of the salvage of the wreck. The 10.72 meter long cutter sank on Jan 2. The 12 meter long ship was built in 1984 at the Bieritz shipyard in Friedrichskoog as 'Helga I-KAS 1'. Until June 30th, 1990, it was registered as 'MAA 2 Pilgrim'. On May 19th, 1993, it was registered as 'SK 30-Kulle Christoph'. It was in service until 2018, after which it was laid up in Möltenort. In 2024 it was offered for sale in poor condition by the Heikendorf municipal utilities, who tried to find ways to dispose of it, but without success until it sank. Report with photo: https://www.kn-online.de/lokales/ploen/gesunkener-kutter-in-heikendorf-bergung-wird-vorbereitet-YCQP2ONKB5APHFJSKFCIYRDVAM.html

arrived Bhavnagar Anchorage 16.01.25

The 'Joseph Doyle' repatriated 58 people to the Dominican Republic on Jan 15, following the interdiction of two migrant boats near Puerto Rico. Four of the interdicted migrants remained in U.S. custody and were facing possible federal prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico on charges of attempting to illegally re‑enter the United States in violation of Title 8, U.S.C., Section 1326, and failure to heave in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Section 2237. The first interdiction occurred on the morning of Jan 13, after a Customs and Border Protection Caribbean Air and Marine Branch crew on a routine patrol detected a 25-foot makeshift vessel in waters southwest of Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. Sector San Juan watchstanders diverted the Coast Guard Cutter 'Joseph Tezanos' to respond. Shortly thereafter, it arrived on-scene and deployed the Over the Horizon Boat which stopped the compliant suspect vessel. While the 'Joseph Tezanos' was in the process of disembarking the migrants, the boat crew reported that three people, who had remained aboard the makeshift vessel, re‑energized the vessel engines, and attempted to flee the scene with several migrants who had not yet been disembarked from the boat. The Coast Guard crew reestablished pursuit and successfully stopped the suspect vessel. Following the interdiction, the 'Joseph Tezanos' embarked all 41 migrants, 21 of whom claimed to be Dominican Republic nationals and 20 to be Haitian nationals. The second interdiction occurred the afternoon of Jan 13, after a Customs and Border Protection Caribbean Air and Marine Branch crew on a routine patrol detected a 30-foot makeshift boat northwest of Aguadilla. Sector San Juan watchstanders diverted the 'Joseph Tezanos' to respond. Shortly thereafter, it arrived on-scene and deployed the Over the Horizon Boat to stop the migrant boat. The operator refused to stop and conducted aggressive evasive maneuvers to flee the area. The boat crew successfully stopped the suspect vessel. Following the interdiction, the crew embarked 21 migrants, 17 of whom claimed to be Dominican Republic nationals and four to be Haitian nationals. The 'Joseph Doyle' repatriated the migrants from both cases to San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, on Jan 15, where they were received by Dominican Republic Navy authorities. Meanwhile, the migrants facing prosecution were transferred to U.S. Ramey Sector Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigations agents in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. Report with photo: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4032184/coast-guard-returns-58-migrants-to-dominican-republic-following-maritime-interd/

On the night of Jan 16, two canoes arrived on their own in Tenerife with 37 and 50 people on board respectively. The captains of the 'Salvamar Adhara' and 'Salvamar Acrux' notified the control center. In Las Palmas, the 'Salvamar Macondo' rescued 50 migrants aboard a canoe on the morning of Jan 16 and transferred them to Arguineguín. The response was coordinated by the CCS Las Palmas of Salvamento Marítimo. Report with photo: https://x.com/salvamentogob/status/1880172490221125709

Just after the new southern lock of the Kiel Canal in Brunsbüttel was put back into operation on Jan 16, 2025, the 'Nordic Porto', en route from Wilhelmshaven to Gdynia,was supposed to be the first ship to enter. At 09:07 a.m., however, it allided with the central control unit of the new lock amid thick fog in the outer port. The force of the impact was so great that steel dolphins were bent and the friction timbers were torn from their anchorages. As a result, the floating fenders of the tail unit drifted through the outer port. The dolphins and the lighting installed on them also suffered severe damage. The lock had to be closed again until all the dolphin parts have been recovered. The tug 'Fairplay 54', which had already been ordered to assist, towed the ship to the marine dolphins north in Brunsbüttel for investigations. It has suffered slight bow damage such as abrasions at starboard side. The professional association for traffic ordered a sailing ban until the shiph's technique had been checked. At 3.20 p.m. UTCC, it was allowed to resume the voyage with an ETA at the port of destination as of Jan 17. The lock will remain closed until Dec 17, while two work boats were removing the debris.

The 'Mermar', which has become subject to new U.S. sanctions, docked at the port of Longkou in Yantai on Jan 5, 2025,and started unloading Russian oil at a port operated by Shandong Port Group. The tanker became the first to do so in Shandong province since the penalties were announced. The vessel was carrying 80,000 metric tons (600,000 barrels) of Russian ESPO Blend crude, which was loaded on Jan 6 in the Port of Kozmino on Russia's east coast. The area is home to multiple independent Chinese refineries, which have been major importers of Russian crude. Industry officials will be closely watching the situation, eager to see how rigorously the measures will be enforced. The sanctions include a grace period exempting cargoes loaded before Jan. 10 and unloaded before March 12, but the industry halted some shipments while it assessed their risks. The US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said the 'Mermar' had called at a Russian port where oil has consistently traded well above the $60 price cap imposed by the West to try to curb Russia's oil revenues. The tanker is part of the shadow fleet that Russia has so far used to circumvent sanctions. Its registered owner, the Merluza Group, has also been subject to restrictions under the new measures. The vessel is managed by Hong Kong-based Ocean Anemone Shipmanagement and insured by Russia-based Balance Insurance. The ship had insurance coverage from New Zealand's Maritime Mutual until May 2025, but changed insurers in November 2024,. Before the announcement of the US sanctions, the Shandong Port Group had banned US-sanctioned tankers from calling at its ports in the eastern Chinese province. The list of 183 US-sanctioned vessels includes 68 ships registered under the Panama flag. In this regard, the Maritime Authority of Panama (AMP) reported that it began to cancel the registrations of those vessels identified by the OFAC.

The 'Sun Ray', en route from Dubai to St. Petersburg, Russia, with an ETA as of Jan 15, 2025, has lost cargo probably on Jan 6, in the deep-water route, 82 kilometers west of Texel. During a patrol flight by a Dutch Coastguard aircraft, the aerial observers saw damage to the ship, the Coast Guard announced on Jan 16, 2025. The Coast Guard worked closely with Rijkswaterstaa, and n order to locate the cargo, they calculated a search area. The Rijkswaterstaat research vessel 'Zirfaea' and the naval vessel Zr.Ms. 'Schiedam', which both an scan the seabed with special equipment, searched this area. A total of 14 objects were found, including gears and a cog radar. The Coast Guard informed shipping about the objects on the seabed via navigation messages. In addition, a virtual buoy has been placed to mark the location of the objects. Rijkswaterstaat is investigating whether the objects can be salvaged. During the operation, close cooperation took place with Rijkswaterstaat, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, the Royal Netherlands Navy, customs and the police. The Maritime Police Team (TMP) was conducting further investigations. Report with photo: https://www.regionoordkop.nl/16/01/2025/vrachtschip-verloor-lading-op-de-noordzee/