from Wired:
On the ground in Haiti, search-and-rescue teams and aid workers have used collaborative tools, text messaging and GPS technology to map out and coordinate relief efforts. Out in Port-au-Prince harbor, U.S. Coast Guard teams are using similar tools to restore Haiti’s shattered main seaport.
The Coast Guard cutter USCGC Oak is currently at anchor near the port terminal in downtown Port-au-Prince. Among other things, the Oak deployed a Maritime Transportation System Recovery Unit, a team that is helping the Haitian Port authority get things up and running at the port. In some respects, it’s the maritime equivalent of the Air Force special operations team that helped restore air traffic control at Haiti’s main airport.
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Tags: · coast_guard, Haiti
Our friend Richard Rodriguez of the BitterEnd Blog had an excellent post titled VTS – Working with large vessels, that gives Puget Sound boaters tips on communicating with the numerous large ships transiting to and from port. [Continue Reading →]
Vessel Traffic Services Overview:
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Tags: · coast_guard, hong_kong_marine_department, Photo, radar, traffic_center, traffic_control, traffic_controllers, USCG, uscg_photo, vessel_traffic_service, volpe_center, vts
gCaptain’s all time favorite TV commercial and worst nightmare.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6077326441742307086
Funniest video of last year! Thanks, Berlitz
(Is your company blocking access? View the file here: LINK )
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Tags: · 911, coast_guard, Communication, distress, funny, german_coast_guard, GMDSS, Humor, Interesting, sinking, sos, tv_commercial, Video, youtube
Effective January 1, 2008, mariners sailing in the capacity of Ship Security Officer (SSO) will have to show evidence of being “qualified” to hold that position. The SSO training requirement only applies to STCW vessels 500GT or greater operating on international voyages. Evidence of qualification will include the following:
Course completion certificate (in accordance with the Maritime Transportation Security Act [MTSA] and/or in accordance with the International Maritime Organization [IMO] model course for Ship Security Officer).
Company letter or certificate attesting to the qualifications (in accordance with the Maritime Transportation Security Act [MTSA] regulations and the International Ship and Port Facility [ISPS] Code).
The U.S. Coast Guard has determined that any training completed in accordance with 33 CFR, Part 104.215, is substantially equivalent to the STCW requirements. Therefore, no additional training should be required. The Coast Guard has informed Port State Control worldwide of this arrangement.
Before July 1, 2009, the Coast Guard intends to amend 33 CFR, Part 104.215, to create a “Ship Security Officer” endorsement that will be included on the mariners license or documents.
Continue reading for the FAQ.
Are the SSO laws in you’re country or flag state changing? Let us know in the comments section.
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Tags: · coast_guard, imo, ISPS Code, licensing, mariner, marsec, Training, USCG
Want to know more about The Protector? Popular Mechanics tells us;
Robots versus pirates—it’s not as stupid, or unlikely, as it sounds. Piracy has exploded in the waters near Somalia, where this past week United States warships have fired on two pirate skiffs, and are currently in pursuit of a hijacked Japanese-owned vessel. At least four other ships in the region remain under pirate control, and the problem appears to be going global: The International Maritime Bureau is tracking a 14-percent increase in worldwide pirate attacks this year.
The Protector, which comes mounted with a 7.62mm machine gun, wasn’t originally intended for anti-piracy operations. But according to BAE Systems spokesperson Stephanie Moncada, the robot could easily fill that role. “Down the line, it could potentially be modified for commercial use as well,” she says. Instead of being deployed by a warship to intercept and possibly fire on an incoming vessel, a non-lethal variant of the Protector could be used to simply investigate a potential threat. Continue Reading…
Also be sure to check out BitterEnd’s video find: Tres Cool – RIB boarding a Chinook
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Tags: · anti_piracy, bae_systems, coast_guard, high_seas, international_maritime_bureau, ISPS Code, israeli_defense, law_enforcement_agencies, lockheed_martin, machine_gun, Marine Technology, Navy, piracy, pirate, popular_mechanics, robots, skiffs, Uncategorized, unmanned_surface_vessels, USCG, Video, warship, warships, weapons, youtube
Click Photo For Details
Bloomberg News tells us:
South Korea’s coast guard sent boats to contain the country’s biggest oil spill in more than a decade after a Hong Kong-registered supertanker collided with a barge.
About 81,000 barrels of crude oil was spilt after a crane on the barge crashed into the Hebei Spirit at 7:15 a.m. local time, Jeong Seon Mun, deputy director of the maritime safety information center at South Korea’s Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Fisheries, said. The ship was anchored 5 miles (8 kilometers) northwest of the Taean peninsula at the time.
The leak is almost a third of the 37,000 tons spilled into Prince William Sound, Alaska, by the Exxon Valdez in 1989, according to data on the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation’s Web site. The Taean Coast Guard deployed 12 patrol boats and 3 accident control vessels, Jeong said today.
“Oil is still spilling,” Jeong said by telephone in Seoul. “The police face difficulty in carrying out the operation because high waves make it hard to contain the spill.” Continue Reading…
Also see our related post History’s 10 Most Famous Oil Spills.
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Tags: · barge, coast_guard, crane, crude_oil, Environment, Heavy Lift, hebei spirit, maritime_affairs, maritime_safety, marpol, MARPOL Incidents, oil_spill, south_korea, Tankers
After one long day of a full-press search for the tall ship Alvei, New Zealand Coast Guard’s P-3 aircraft crew was able to find the overdue ship. The reason for worry? Expected radio check-ins never happened. News.au tells us;
Julia Lang from Maritime New Zealand said authorities would meet The Alvei’s crew when they arrived in Opua, in New Zealand in 8-10 days time.
They would be asked why the ship did not respond to the radio broadcasts, and why the delay was not reported to authorities.
“Relatives have been concerned … had the vessel been making VHF contact we would have been able to allay anyone’s fear relatively quickly,” Lang said.
“All maritime authorities internationally see skippers as responsible for their vessels. Part of that is being responsible by keeping regular and scheduled communications via maritime radio or other means.
“The fact is it has been extremely difficult. It created a lot of anxiety.”
It is unclear whether the crew may be asked to fund the cost of the search. Continue Reading…
Read gCaptain’s full coverage: P
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Tags: · coast_guard, Communication, maritime_authorities, maritime_radio, new_zealand, radio_broadcasts, radio_check, tall_ship, vhf
Every wonder what happens if you need to be helicoptered off a cruise ship? The USCG has released this video of a medivac operation off the coast of Mexico. The Press release states;
SAN DIEGO, Calif., (November 16, 2007) Crews from Air Stations San Diego and Sacramento conducted a medevac of a 72 year-old-male from a cruise ship 70 miles east of Isla De Guadalupe, Mexico. The C-130 from Air Sta Sacramento flew overhead coverage as the HH-60 from Air Station San Diego hoisted the man from the ship. The man was taken to Air Station San Diego where he was transferred to local EMS.
(Opens in new window)
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Tags: · coast_guard, Cruise Ship, cruise_ship, helicopter, isla_de_guadalupe, medevac, medi-vac, medical_helicopter, medivac, mexico, press_release, USCG, Video
Rear Admiral Craig E. Bone is not one to back down from criticism, his comments regarding questions we posed to the San Francisco Chronicle were strong and to the point. Perhaps it’s for this reason Admiral Thad Allen, a straight talker himself, appointed him to the high profile position early this summer. Taking a proactive stance to defense, Admiral Bone today responded to NJ.com’s criticism of the USCG’s response to the San Francisco Oil Spill with the following comments;
Your Nov. 16 editorial about the recent oil spill in San Francisco questioning the U. S. Coast Guard’s readiness did not mention several important facts and contained several misperceptions.
The motor vessel Cosco Busan’s striking of the Bay Bridge in San Francisco Bay and spilling 58,000 gallons of fuel was an avoidable disaster. The Coast Guard and NTSB are working to determine what went so tragically wrong on this modern ship with advanced equipment, and under the guidance and direction of a state licensed pilot and the command of a licensed master.
Ultimately the motor vessel Cosco Busan master is responsible for the safe operation of the vessel. Thousands of commercial oceangoing ships navigate safely in fog worldwide and in much more restricted waterways. The question for our investigators and the National Transportation Safety Board is why didn’t this one?
The response to the oil spill here was anything but weak and slow as your editorial asserted. Within 15 minutes Coast Guard pollution investigators were directed to the scene and they arrived through heavy fog 28 minutes later. Continue Reading—>
Member’s of the San Francisco Pilot Association have also expressed their views. In a release by the Associated Press, SF Pilot Eric Robinson Comments;
“An international standardization of bridge equipment like radars and electronic navigation equipment — to me, that would be the legislation I would like to see come out of this,” Robinson said during an interview as he set a course for Hawaii.
“I’ve seen at least a dozen different electronic charts and dozens of radar displays,” Robinson said. “Bridge markings, buoy markings, depth contour curves, what measurements the depths are in, whether they’re in fathoms, feet or meters — basically every aspect of the chart other than the outlay of the land could be different.”
Some pilots, frustrated by the varying systems, have begun carrying their own laptops loaded with familiar charting software onto the ships, he said. The laptops can be plugged into the ship’s navigation equipment.
This article is a must read for all mariners and can be found here: “Oil Spill Fuels Debate in Ship Industry”
Cosco Busan Reading List:
Update:
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Tags: · admiral_bone, coast_guard, cosco_busan, Craig_Bone, MARPOL Incidents, oil_spill, rear_admiral, San Francisco, san_francisco_chronicle, USCG
Fairplay brings us the most ridiculous item of the day;
Vessels transiting US harbours could come under tight navigational controls in the wake of the Cosco Busan bridge strike and resulting spill in San Francisco Bay. Sources close to the investigation tell Fairplay that federal officials may suggest that vessels transiting US channels may be compelled to follow navigational instructions issued by the US Coast Guard’s Vessel Traffic Service. In the case of the Cosco Busan accident, it has been alleged that VTS duty officers tried to warn the vessel off its impact course with the Bay Bridge, but their advice is just that and not mandatory for vessel operators. Fairplay asked USCG Commandant Thad Allen about the suggestion and he said that, if required to, the Coast Guard is up to the challenge of positively controlling commercial vessel traffic. But he noted that most major US harbors presently don’t have VTS systems and that such a change would require a major financial commitment “and a departure from the current culture regarding vessel navigation responsibility”. The suggested system would be along the lines of air traffic control procedures which Allen says were developed centuries after the traditional rules for vessel captains and pilots.
The problem with maritime incidents is the fix rarely address the true cause and often creates problems that contribute to future incidents. As an example here’s an email from a gCaptain reader who wishes to remain anonymous;
“The new ISPS reporting requirements are sinking us in paperwork. Just yesterday I was on bridge watch in moderate traffic, typing a report out on my laptop. For 15 minutes our captain observed my action from the chart room then came out and said:
5 Years ago if I saw you typing a report on that F$@@’n laptop I would have fired you on the spot. Today, with all these ISM/ISPS requirements, if I come up here and find your not on your laptop typing out reports, I’ll fire you on the spot!
I was paying attention to the traffic but we both knew it didn’t have my full attention… and these reports were suppose to be making us safer!! I don’t feel safer and I don’t feel the paperwork will keep terrorists away from my ship”
Unsafe indeed.
Vessel Traffic in US ports is exceptionally well run and experienced in vessel safety and operations. They do not make the proposal ridiculous, Admiral Allen does. Why? Current technology is simply not capable of delivering real time tracking. Also, final say remains the responsibility of a ship’s captain because he is the one who knows the ship’s capabilities, it’s crew and he is stationed on the bridge. He is also the last one to abandon if the ship finds danger… and he knows it.
If the Coast Guard wants final say then they need to be aboard the vessel and if that happens they will be hard pressed to fill the position with anyone more qualified than the competent and experienced San Francisco Pilots.
UPDATE:
Bob Couttie of Maritime Accident Casebook comments on this post;
VTS-assisted accidents, by action or inaction, aren’t rare, or at least not rare enough. John Clandillon-Baker, editor of The Pilot, journal of the UK Maritime Pilots Association sent us an email reminder about the Sea Express/Alaska Rainbow collision in February, 2007. VTS issues also featured in the grounding of the P&O Nedlloyd Magellan in 2001, and the source or worst oil spill so far in Singapore waters, the collision between the Evoikos and Orapin Global in October 1997. One can arguably include the Exxon Valdez.
USCG Commandant Thad Allen’s assurance to Fairplay that his command is up to the challenge has a Rice-Davies sort of quality to it, he would say that, wouldn’t he.
MAC’s own informal think-tank of veteran master mariners, who aren’t tanked up when they think, finds the proposal less objectionable, the authority of the master will remain in force much as it does now, in their view.
This is only a clip of Bob’s article so be sure to read his full post: “Cosco Busan – Who Needs Pilots?“
__________________________________________________
John Konrad is a USCG licensed Master Mariner of Unlimited Tonnage. Since graduating from SUNY Maritime College he has sailed 4 of the world’s oceans and reports from his ship via satellite.
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Tags: · coast_guard, commercial_vessel_traffic, Communication, cosco_busan, fairplay, ism, ISPS Code, Marine Incidents, moderate_traffic, navigational_controls, navigational_instructions, oil_spill, ridiculous, San Francisco, USCG, uscg_commandant, vessel_navigation, vessel_operators, vessel_traffic_service, vts_systems
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