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The crew of the 38-foot sailboat Liahona contacted the Coast Guard Cutter Kiska Tuesday at approximately 5:30 p.m via satellite phone. Their sailboat became disabled in seas of 6-to-13 feet and winds of 34 mph. The vessel reportedly suffered damage to its top forestay and its engine overheated. The crew attempted to rig a makeshift sail but completely lost its mast in the extreme conditions.

Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu contacted the 893-foot container ship Horizon Reliance to render assistance under the Automated Mutual Assistance Vessel Rescue System (AMVER). The Horizon Reliance was 149 miles northeast of their Liahona’s location.

At 1:30 a.m. Wednesday morning the Horizon Reliance reached the disabled vessel. As the Horizon Reliance approached the vessel, weather conditions caused the bow of the Horizon Reliance to strike the sailboat.  The Liahona began taking on water and sank, forcing the three passengers into the sea.

The Horizon Reliance maneuvered and lowered a Jacobs’s ladder to reach the survivors. A 29-year-old man was rescued at 2:30 a.m. by the crew of the Horizon Reliance, but the others, a 32-year-old man and 9-year-old boy, drifted away. Both were rescued at 3:20 a.m.

All three sailors are reportedly in good condition.

“We are thankful the Horizon Reliance was in the right place at the right time to come to the aid of these individuals,” said William A. Hamlin, Horizon Lines Senior Vice President of Operations. “We commend Captain Kelleher and his crew for their skilled seamanship in accomplishing a successful rescue despite very adverse weather conditions.”

“No rescue situation can be completely planned for, the sea is ever changing and unforgiving,” said Cmdr. Mark Morin, District Response Manager. “The crew had life jackets with strobe lights on, which was critical in aiding to the Horizon Reliance to keep an eye on them and make the rescue.”

The Liahona was traveling from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to Oahu, Hawaii.

The Kiska is a 110-foot patrol boat based in Hilo, Hawaii.

AMVER, sponsored by the U.S. Coast Guard, is a unique, computer-based, and voluntary global ship reporting system used worldwide by search and rescue authorities to arrange for assistance to persons in distress at sea. With AMVER, rescue coordinators can identify participating ships in the area of distress and divert the best-suited ship or ships to respond.

For more information about AMVER visit www.amver.com.

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Amidst the fears of Global Economic Turmoil, the ship breaking yard in India at Alang in Bhavnagar District in Gujarat state is all set to demolish 400+ vessels, in financial year 2011-12.

New vessels ordered in year 2006-2007-2008 are all set for deliveries by 2012, adding Global Shipping capacities by 25%, whereas on the flipside, freight-rate reductions and the global economic slowdown will result in a large number of ships to be destined for India’s ship breakers.  According to Bloomberg |UTV, they anticipate more than 180 million gross tons of the global shipping fleet, mainly comprised of vessels older than 20 years, will be made available for demolition.

Regulatory issues in Bangladesh and a high cost of breaking ships in China makes Alang a favorite destination for ship breaking.  Significant economic factors play into this as well considering India’s current  ban on iron-ore mining, and an infrastructure that is particularly suited for the consumption of scrap steel.

The depreciating Indian Rupee is becoming a factor however, as it is now becoming more and more cost-prohibitive to purchase vessels for demolition, in particular, non-Indian ships.

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While arctic ice patrols and real-time satellite imagery has made iceberg avoidance routine, some ship captains still seek the thrill of getting close to these ice-cold arctic behemoths. Lucky for us, most of these thrill seekers take video cameras with them.

Labrador

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Filmed by Mike Earle this video shows an iceberg collapses off the National Historic District of Battle Harbour, Labrador. And, sorry Mike, Icebergs aren’t always “attached to the bottom” as you mention in the video.

Too Close For Comfort

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If you think a cruise ship “flyby” is dangerous in the warm waters of the Italian coast then close your eyes for the next video because Captain Francesco Schettino certainly has nothing on the captain of Antarctic Dream. Watch as he wrestles an iceberg with the bow of his ship.

Flying Shrapnel

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Crashing your ship into an iceberg is a dumb way to get your thrills but it’s not half as crazy as these videos of rock hard ice being thrown by claving bergs.

Capsize

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Ice melts in water, so what happens when the bottom of an iceberg melts leaving a massive amount of ice up top? Capsize!

“Tsunami” of Ice

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Filmed by a local resident, this footage shows a massive wave that was generated by the calving of an iceberg into the sea. The wave is small at first, but builds in size crashing into a nearby coast where fishing boats are tossed and broken apart.

As a former Captain in the United States Coast Guard, Michael Crye has spent his career working on marine safety issues and this interview with CBC Canada’s the fifth estate, Crye responds to concerns that cruising is unsafe.

Overall, despite the appropriate dogging of some questions, the interview is informative and provides a good insight into the future of the cruise ship industry. One important point repeated by Crye is that new technological invoation is making the newest, largest ships safer than existing cruise ships. In the video he mentions new electronic bridge systems and lifeboats with increasly larger embarkation hatches to allow quicker passenger loading.  This leads to an important question… will older cruise ships be retrofitted with the new lifeboats and bridge systems?

The full interview video can be found at CBC’s the fifth estate.

As Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas departed Port Everglades, Florida last week, the hydrodynamic response of the ship as it interacted with the surrounding tidal areas left beach-goers puzzled, and for those who were in the water, perhaps even a bit worried as they were sucked toward the channel…

Video and Images shot by maritime headhunter and University of Miami sailing coach, Craig Johnson –  Flagship Management www.flagshipmgt.com

Photo Sequence:

In the three years since Google earthexpanded its reach into the ocean the company has focused with enthusiasm on building great relationships with the world’s leading oceanographers, people like David Sandwell at Scripps/UCSD, Sylvia Earl and Walter Smith at NOAA, and many others have collaborated to bring greater depth and accuracy to Google Ocean. And today the efforts have paid off.

Today Google has announced a major update to Earth which, by incorporating ocean topography soundings from all over the globe, reveals the most accurate digital view of the seafloor to date. This new detail comes from spacecraft measurements of bumps and dips in the ocean surface as well as shipboard soundings from surveys carried out by over 40 countries. With this update to ocean terrain data in Google Earth, 15 percent of the seafloor is now available at 1 km resolution.

Google tells us that, in order to make this update possible, “partners at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UCSD have curated 30 years of data from more than 8,000 ship cruises and 135 different institutions.” And to showcase the new technology they have released the following video which, in detail, showcases all of the new features of Google Ocean. Take a look:

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Alex Thomson attempts what he calls ‘The Keel Walk’, on board his 60ft yacht ‘HUGO BOSS’.

Alex is a professional yachtsman with two world records under his belt.  At age 25, he was the youngest skipper ever to win a round the world race in the 1998/1999 Clipper Round the World Race, a record he still holds today.

Hugo Boss is a 60-foot carbon fiber yacht designed for single-handed, round-the-world offshore racing in the Vendee Globe Challenge.  She was designed by legendary naval architect Juan Kouyoumdjian, and is significantly more powerful than any other vessels in her class.

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Built by Shin Kurushima Dockyard Co. over a 4-year period, she began her maiden voyage on January 27, 2012.

Nichioh Maru, image courtesy NISSAN

Nichioh Maru’s green secret is its energy-saving, electronically-controlled diesel engine, with 281 solar panels fitted to the carrier’s deck, as well as a low-friction coating on its hull, for better hydrodynamic performance.

Compared to an existing car carrier of the same type, the operator claims this ship can achieve a fuel reduction of up to nearly 1,400 tons annually, which converts to an annual reduction of 4,200 tons of CO2 emissions.

These panels, and the LED lights they illuminate in the ship’s hold and crew quarters, are a first in Japan, says Tomohiko Uchiyama, president of Nitto Kaiun Corporation, Roro’s operator.

“As Nissan went to the effort to launch the Nissan LEAF at that time, in terms of the logistical flow, we thought there would be a way for us to contribute using state-of-the-art technologies,” said Uchiyama.

“This is the first domestic vessel to have photovoltaic panels. Together using LED lighting on this ship, we aim to create an energy-efficient carrier.

“And, especially, if we use solar panels, we can reduce CO2 emissions because we don’t need to use oil for operating the generator. Already with this aspect, I believe that we can say that the introduction of this ship is a success.”

With a capacity of up to 1,380 cars, Nichioh Maru will join two other carriers in daily service on a 1,800 km domestic roundtrip route from Oppama Wharf near Yokohama, to Kobe, and then to the southern island of Kyushu — making two roundtrips per week.

The ship’s captain, 38-year veteran Tamotsu Sato, is pleased to be at the eco-helm.

“Something that’s gentle to the environment — that’s the most important thing, considering the current system on the ship. And, of course, we also have the solar power system,” said Sato. “This carrier is important in many ways. In my opinion, as a captain, I have no doubt that this ship will be a front runner in this industry…And from here on out,  I plan to do my best to again boost my skill set to work with this new technology.”

Image courtesy NISSAN

The Nichioh Maru follows in the sustainability wake of the City of St. Petersburg eco-carrier, which Nissan began using in 2010 for international routes in Europe.

This makes the eco-ship a dream carrier, and with more carriers to follow, Nissan is positioned to stay leagues ahead in sustainable mobility.

Vessel Details:

• Length: 169.95 m
• Width: 26.00 m
• Total weight: 11,400 tons
• Load capacity: Completed vehicles: 880 units (without truck trailers: 1,380 units), with trailers: 115 units
• Operating speed: 21.2 knots

Stuart Bannatyne onboard CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand during approaching the Indonesian Island Pulau Weh on leg 3 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12, from Abu Dhabi, UAE to Sanya, China. Image by Hamish Hooper/CAMPER ETNZ/Volvo Ocean Race

I made my first trip to Singapore back in 2000 as a Division Officer on board USS Paul F. Foster.  As we were making our way up around the northern side of the island to Sembawang, I was absolutely astounded by the virtual garbage dump our bow wave pushed aside as we motored along through the channel.

It was unbelievable how little regard the Malaysians and Singaporeans had for their ocean environment… quite a stark contrast indeed from the relatively pristine streets of Singapore.

The Volvo Ocean Race fleet is currently experiencing the same level of frustration and disbelief as they make their way through this global maritime crossroads.

Ken Read, skipper of Puma Ocean Racing remarks,

“It’s an incredible place to sail but the sad part is how much stuff is in the water, how much junk there is in the water,’’ he said. “How people in the world can’t treat the ocean with more respect is just fully beyond me.”

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The United Nations Environment Program has reported that more than 15,000 vessels pass through the strait every day, each disposing of operational discharge, bilge water and trash. Fishing vessels, aquaculture development, coastal urbanisation and reclamation are also adding to the pollution.

The debris is demanding the constant attention of the sailors, who are spending their time on deck scanning the water for anything that could snag or hit the boat and potentially result in race ending damage.

Earlier this week PUMA’s MAR Mostro hit a tree and took a chunk out of their dagger board.  Bowman Casey Smith said it was both frightening and bizarre sailing through the strait.

“The night time is scary because it’s all still there, but you can’t see any of it,’’ he said. “We saw a sea kayak poking out of the water today. That was pretty strange. Then we saw a flip-flop and it had three crabs on it. What sort of a conversation are three crabs having on a flip flop in the middle of the Malacca Strait?”

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand Media Crew Member Hamish Hooper said one curious piece of rubbish caused the crew to begin to wonder if they were approaching an iceberg earlier this week.

“Disappointingly there is a huge amount of rubbish in the water here now — we have seen signs of it approaching here over the last couple of days with the odd shoe, cigarette lighter, rope, plastic etc. floating past,’’ he said.

“But this morning’s sighting took the cake. We saw what looked like a small iceberg, which in fact was a massive chunk of polystyrene, the size of a small car lazily floating on by.

“Unfortunately there is almost a continual stream of rubbish flowing past the boat and I am pretty certain it’s only going to increase the further down the strait we go.”

The Volvo Ocean Race together with artist collective Skeleton Sea have mounted a global campaign called Keep the Oceans Clean! that aims at raising awareness of the increasing volume of pollution in the world’s oceans.

Skeleton Sea’s sculptures, which are created from flotsam, beach rubbish and weathered materials are exhibited at the Keep the Oceans Clean! Dome at the race village at each host port. Beach cleans are also held at each host port, to help raise awareness and keep the oceans clean. To find out more click HERE.