Shown here, 3 lifeboats carrying some of the 64 students and crew that were rescued after the tall ship Concordia sank 344 miles off the coast of Rio de Janiero Wednesday, February 17th.  According to Amver:

The Crystal Pioneer, an Amver participant since November 2008, located the lifeboats early Friday morning February 19th. New reports stated the Crystal Pioneer could not begin rescue operations until first light due to the darkness and rough seas. The Crystal Pioneer, managed by MMS Company Ltd, rescued 20 people while the Hokuetsu Delight, managed by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, rescued the remaining 44 students and crew. The Hokuetsu Delight has been participating in Amver for 10 years.

Amazingly, all 64 students and crew were rescued, unharmed, after approximately 40 hours adrift at sea.  More images can be seen on Amver’s flickr page, HERE.

Above photo courtesy of Amver and Mitsui O.S.K Lines, Ltd

The below graphic, provided by The Globe and Mail, demonstrates just what caused the Concordia to go down (click for larger image).  [Continue Reading →]

Image via Digital Journal

According to reports, all 64 students aboard the Canadian flagged tall ship Concordia which san 300 miles off the Brazilian coast have been rescued.  The Canadian Press has the story:

Officials say students, teachers and crew aboard a Nova Scotia-based tall ship that sank off the coast of Brazil in high winds spent about 16 hours in life-rafts before all 64 were rescued Friday by three passing cargo vessels.

Officials say the 57-metre sailing school sank in strong winds about 500 kilometres southeast of Rio de Janeiro, forcing the 42 Canadians and remaining staff and students from other countries around the world to scramble into four life-rafts.

The ship’s owner is West Island College International, based in Lunenburg, N.S.

The stepmother of one of the Canadian students on board said she received a call just before midnight letting her know that the vessel had sank, but that everyone was all right.

Read Article

A press release issued by the West Island College Class Afloat can be read on their website HERE.

According to the Amver blog, the Philippine flagged Amver participating ship Hokuetsu Delight was first to answer the distress calls from the tall ship, which is also enrolled in Amver.

Right on the heals of gCaptain’s very own iPhone app, Amver has entered into the world mobile based technology (or in my opinion convenience based technology) with their very own application.  The Amver blog tells us:

Amver, There’s An App For That!

Are you trying to keep track of the rescue news, blog posts, Twitter stream, and other social media products Amver dishes out to you? No need to worry because today we announce the launch of our application on iTunes!

Compatible with the iPhone and soon to be released iPad, the Amver app combines our blog posts and Twitter stream in a single source. Why does an international search and rescue program need an iPhone app? Because the way information is delivered and consumed is evolving. C.C. Chapman, who recently launched his own iPhone application, stated on his blog that he wanted an easy one click way for people to get his content. C.C. is not alone. Chris Brogan also launched an iPhone application of all his content. Read full blog post

The launch of the new iPhone app is just the newest product in Amver’s arsenal that allows them to “engage with their customers”.  Best of all you can download the Amver app for free by clicking HERE.

Test it out and let us know what you think in the comments.

Cittia De Salerno Sailboat Rescue At Sea

This week’s incident photo of the week is the rescue of the sailboat Cittia De Salerno’s captain, Gianfranco Tortolani, on the USA to UK segment of the the Original Single Handed Trans-Atlantic Race. AMVER tells us: [Continue Reading →]

Should LRIT replace Amver? This question was raised by Ryan Erickson on the Unofficial Coast Guard Blog. Ryan did a nice job of highlighting many of the features of both systems. Let’s explore things a bit further. [Continue Reading →]

Via Amver Blog

Are you coming to the U.S. Amver Awards Ceremony in Washington, DC today? Information on the ceremony can be found here. Besides U.S. Amver award recipients guests such as United States Coast Guard Rear Admiral Brian Salerno and United States Coast Guard Vice Commandant Vivien Crea will be attending. Stop by to pay tribute to the many U.S. shipping companies participating in the Amver system dedicated to safety at sea.

See you there!

Well not gCaptain, we unfortunately will not be attending, but here is a little more about what Amver has to say about the awards. [Continue Reading →]

AMVER, the ‘Automated Mutual Assistance Vessel Rescue System’ has been around for over 50 years but is not relying on it’s reputable history to help recruit participants. Joining the Coast Guard in a recent push to embrace social media they have launched a Facebook page. You can find the micro site complete with rescue photos and stories HERE.

Via CGBlog.com

Bitterend brings us the anniversary of AMVER:

Originally known as the Atlantic Merchant Vessel Emergency Reporting (AMVER) System, it became operational on July 18, 1958. Amver began as an experiment, confined to waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, notorious for icebergs, fog and winter storms. Vice Admiral Alfred C. Richmond, Coast Guard Commandant at the time, called on all commercial vessels of U.S. and foreign registry, over 1,000 gross tons and making a voyage of more than 24 hours, to voluntarily become Amver participants. The basic premise of Amver, as a vehicle for mariner to help mariner without regard to nationality, continues to this day. Continue Reading…