Update: Azamara Quest – Passengers Praise Captain and Crew of Stricken Cruise Ship

Posted on by April 2, 2012

The stricken luxury cruise ship Azamara Quest sails towards the port of Sandakan on the island of Borneo Photo: REUTERS/Bazuki Muhammad

In a pleasant contrast to events surrounding the sinking of the Costa Concordia, the passengers aboard the  fire damaged cruise ship Azamara Quest are reported to have high praise for the actions of the captain and crew. A fire broke out in one of the ship’s engine rooms on Friday. The fire was extinguished though five crew members suffered injuries due to smoke inhalation. No passengers were injured. The ship drifted for approximately 24 hours in Philippine waters until the crew was able to restart some of the ship’s engines and return electrical and propulsion power.  The ship reached the harbour of Sandakan city in Malaysia’s eastern state of Sabah on Borneo island late on Sunday.
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PT 728, World War II Patrol Torpedo Boat, for Sale in Hammacher Schlemmer Catalog

Posted on by April 1, 2012

Hammacher Schlemmer’s catalog is subtitled: “Offering the Best, the Only and the Unexpected for 164 years.” One item for sale certainly qualifies as “unique.”  They currently list for sale the World War II PT-728, the only PT boat in existence licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard for carrying passengers.  They are asking $1,000,000 for the refurbished boat.

The Genuine PT Boat 
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USCG Cutter Attempts Rescue of Sailors Injured in Clipper Round the World Race 400 Miles off San Francisco

Posted on by April 1, 2012

A large wave broke over the 68′ yacht, Geraldton Western Australia, one of ten yachts racing in the Clipper Round the World Race, while in the Pacific approximately 400 miles off San Francisco. The wave swept the deck, shearing the steering pedestal, damaging electronics and leaving four sailors with injuries ranging from broken ribs to back injuries.  “We were racing along in 40-60 knot gusts,” the boat’s skipper Juan Coetzer said. “The sea was alive with rage. We were making good speed, sailing with the third reef in the main, surfing at 15 to 20 knots. Then at our watch change, just before the sun came up, a monstrous foaming swell broke over our stern.”

The USCG Cutter Bertholf, with rescue helicopters aboard, was dispatched to the stricken yacht. The four injured sailors, who were on deck when the wave hit, are reported to be Jane Hitchens, 50, from Kent, the onboard medic; Nik Brbora, 29, from London; Mark Burkes, 47, from Worcestershire and Max Wilson, 62, a farmer from Queensland, Australia.

Coast Guard attempts rescue after freak wave smashes race yacht in Pacific
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Update: MS Carnival Triumph Allowed to Sail from Galveston, TX in Costa Concordia Lawsuit

Posted on by March 31, 2012

Update:  The MS Carnival Triumph was allowed to sail as scheduled following last minute negotiations.

The 2,758-passenger cruise ship MS Carnival Triumph was supposed to sail today for a five-day cruise to Yucatan and Cozumel. Instead, a Texas judge has ordered the ship held in Galveston as part a $10 million lawsuit filed by the family of a German tourist who died aboard the Costa Concordia.  Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest cruise operator, owns Costa Lines, the owner of the  Costa Concordia.

“The court finds that the conditions for an attachment of defendants’ joint and collective property within this district, mainly the MS Carnival Triumph, appear to exist upon an admiralty and maritime claim,” U.S. Magistrate Judge John Froeschner of Galveston said in the warrant.

Carnival officials are meeting with attorneys this morning to determine what can be done to allow the ship to sail as scheduled.

Carnival Cruise Ship Ordered Held in Texas in Shipwreck Suit

Fire on the MV Azamara Quest Only the Latest Failure on Modern Diesel Electric Cruise Ships

Posted on by March 31, 2012

The fire on the MV Azamara Quest, is one of a recent series of disabling fires and power failures on diesel-electric powered cruise ships.  Unlike the MV Azamara Quest, however, the ship’s crews aboard the Costa Allegra, the Carnival Splendor,  and the MSC Opera were unable to effect repairs to the ships’ propulsion system. These ships  remained blacked out and needed to be towed to port.  A brief summary of recent electrical failures on cruise ships:
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Updated: Fire on Cruise Ship MV Azamara Quest, Five Crew Injured

Posted on by March 31, 2012

Update: A fire broke out late Friday in an engine room on the luxury cruise ship, MV Azamara Quest, while en route from Manila to Sandakan in Sabah, Malaysia.  Five members of the crew were injured, suffering smoke inhallation. One crew member is reported to be seriously injured.  No one among the 590 passengers was reported to be hurt. The ship has a crew of 411.  After a blackout during the fire, the ship had been drifting approximately 70 nautical miles from Tubbataha, in the Philippines, in calm seas.

The ship’s crew has been able to restore partial power for propulsion and to  “re-establish air conditioning, running water, plumbing, refrigeration and food preparation onboard for the comfort of our guests and crew,” according to a statement from the company.  The ship is now reported to be underway, “moving slowly toward Sandakan,” its next port of call in Malaysia.

MV Azamara Quest is owned by Azamara Club Cruises, a subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines,  the world’s second-largest cruise line operator, after Carnival.  The Azamara Quest was on a 17-night voyage that departed Hong Kong, China, on Monday, March 26, and included port calls to Manila, Philippines; Sandakan (Sabah), Malaysia; Palapo (Sulawesi), Benoa (Bali), Semarang and Komodo, Indonesia and was meant to conclude in Singapore on Thursday, April 12.  As a result of the fire, the rest of the ship’s voyage has been cancelled.

Stricken cruise ship repaired, heading to Malaysia

Tall Ships: The Privateer Lynx – Documentary On-line for a Limited Time

Posted on by March 30, 2012

Through an agreement with Snag Films, TheSailingChannel is showing the documentary, Tall Ships: The Privateer Lynx, in HD, free of charge, for a limited time. Thanks to Tom Russell on the Linked-in Traditional Sail Professionals group for pointing out the documentary. See also our post, Honoring the Bicentenial of the War of 1812 with the Captain and Crew of Lynx “America’s Privateer”

Tall Ships: The Privateer Lynx

Honoring the Bicentenial of the War of 1812 with the Captain and Crew of Lynx “America’s Privateer”

Posted on by March 30, 2012

On April 14th, at the Mystic Seaport Museum there will be a celebration of the anniversary of the War of 1812 with the captain and crew of the Lynx, “America’s Privateer.”   Historian and award winning author, William H. White, will be a special guest.  The event will include tours of the ship, a performance by the Sailing Masters of 1812 Fife & Drum Corps, and a book signing of White’s “Our Flag Was Still There.”  There will also be live and silent auctions for a position as guest racer onboard Team Artemis AC45 – America’s Cup World Series – Newport, RI,  a 5 night oceanfront cottage at the beautiful Waimea Plantation on the island of Kauai, and a one week Nantucket home getaway.  To learn more about the Lynx Bicentennial Celebration click here. Please RSVP by April 4 by calling the Advancement Department at 860-572-5365 or emailing advancement@mysticseaport.org. Space is limited. Click here to support the Lynx Educational Foundation and the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.

Soren Larsen’s South Pacific Challenge

Posted on by March 29, 2012

The good folks on the brigantine Søren Larsen are offering a “South Pacific Challenge,” a Youtube video competition where you can explain in a short video why you need to change your life and what a South Pacific voyage on the Søren Larsen would mean to you.   Visitors to their web site will have the opportunity to vote on the uploaded videos. Two winners will be chosen to feature in a professionally filmed documentary about their life changing voyage from the Cook Islands to Samoa on the Søren Larsen.  Entries must be submitted by Friday, April 20th 2012, at 3pm EST.  Click here to learn more.

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Captain Robert Falcon Scott – Heroic Leader or Tragic Bungler?

Posted on by March 29, 2012

No one is exactly sure when Captain Robert Falcon Scott and his four of his fellow explorers died on their failed Antarctic expedition.  Today is observed as the centenary of the deaths because March 19, 1912 was the last entry in Scott’s journal.  Since his death, Scott has been both lionized and roundly condemned.  Depending on who one listens to, Scott was a heroic explorer or a tragic bungler.  A commemorative service at St Paul’s Cathedral today is expected to draw 2,000 Scott admirers from all over the world, while Norwegian Roald Amundsen, who beat Scott to the South Pole by a month and returned without losing a man, is largely forgotten outside of Norway.  Scott is also far better remembered than his colleague and rival Ernest Shackleton. See our recent post, Recreating Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Epic Lifeboat Voyage.

Captain Scott centenary: Storm rages around polar explorer’s reputation
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Major Gas Leak at Total Elgin Platform in the North Sea – Why it Matters

Posted on by March 28, 2012

The Elgin platform in the North Sea, 150 miles (240km) off Aberdeen, suffered a serious natural gas on Sunday.   It is expected at take several weeks, in the best case scenario, to shut off the leak. Some estimates suggest that it will take 6 months to control the leak.   The platform is operated by Total SA.  The leak is reported to be from a well, known as G4, that was drilled in 1997 and has now been shut for about one year.  The leak is estimated at 9 million cubic meters of gas per day or three percent of Britain’s natural gas output.

The U.K. coastguard has established exclusion zones around the area and Shell has evacuated some personnel from its nearby Shearwater platform and Noble Hans Deul drilling rig and suspended drilling operations as a precautionary measure. Shipping was being ordered to keep at least two miles away and there was a three-mile exclusion zone for aircraft.

Total considers relief well to end Elgin gas leak
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Historic Tanker Mary A. Whalen Desperately Needs a Home

Posted on by March 28, 2012

As we have posted before, PortSide New York, based on the historic coastal tanker, Mary A.Whalen,  is one of the absolutely best waterfront educational organizations in New York harbor.  For the last six years, the Mary A. Whalen has never had a permanent home.  Now it needs to find one by April 30th.  If not, the old tanker may be scrapped.

Refurbished oil tanker looking for new home


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Yacht Tabasco 2 Disabled off Nova Scotia – 1 Dead, 2 Injured & 3 Missing

Posted on by March 27, 2012

Canadian Cormorant helicopter

UPDATE:  The Canadian government is now treating the casualty as an attempt at human smuggling.  Toews links N.S. yacht accident to ‘human smuggling’

There are reports of a tragic and strange sailboat accident off Canada’s Nova Scotia coast.  Nine men, reported to be from Eastern Europe, were on a 35 foot sailboat, the Tabasco 2, which became disabled and was drifting in high seas, 148 kilometres south of Cape Sable Island.  Three of the sailboat’s crew are reported to be missing. One man is reported to have died.

Three of the sailboat’s crew were picked up by a passing tanker, the FSL Hamburg.  Three other hypothermic and injured crew members were helicoptered to Yarmouth Regional Hospital.  One of the three died in transit. The other two are said to be in  serious condition.   A Canadian Cormorant helicopter and a Hercules aircraft were involved in the rescue with refueling support from a U.S. Coast Guard jet.

Yacht accident off Nova Scotia leaves 1 dead, 2 injured

What to See at the Bottom of the Sea – the Barren, Desolate Lunar Plain of the Challenger Deep

Posted on by March 27, 2012

On January 23, 1960, Jacques Piccard  and USN Lieutenant Don Walsh spent twenty minutes at the bottom at Challenger Deep in the  bathyscaphe Trieste.  Unfortunately, their landing on the sea bed stirred up a cloud of silt which reduced visibility to zero, and they could not see anything.  On March 26th, James Cameron spend three hours on the bottom of the Challenger Deep and saw very little, because there was apparently little to see.  He described it as a “barren, desolate lunar plain.”    He did see a few small amphipods—shrimplike bottom-feeders.  Then again, no one who climbs Mount Everest expects to find an apple orchard at the summit, either.  Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to this post.

Cameron brings back tales of “desolate” sea bed but no souvenirs

Restoring the Felicity Ann and the Memory of Ann Davison

Posted on by March 27, 2012

The Northwest School of Wooden Boat Building in Port Hadlock, WA, is restoring a forgotten piece of sailing history –  the Felicity Ann, a 23′ wooden boat, launched in 1949.  In 1952-1953, Ann Davison, at 39, sailed  the Felicity Ann single-handed across the Atlantic, becoming the first woman ever to do so.

The project is a partnership between Northwest School of Wooden Boat Building, the Community Boat Project and WSU Jefferson County 4-H. From the Felicity Ann website:
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James Cameron Returns From the Challenger Deep – “Heck of a Ride”

Posted on by March 26, 2012

Last night, James Cameron became the first person ever to dive in a one man submarine to the very bottom of the ocean, the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, 35,755 feet (5.8 nautical miles) below the surface.  He is only the third person to  ever dive the Challenger Deep and is the first person in over fifty years to do so.  A short video of his return to the surface following his epic voyage to the absolute bottom:

Raw Video: Cameron: “Heck of a Ride”

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James Cameron Begins Challenger Deep, Mariana Trench Dive

Posted on by March 25, 2012

Last week we posted about James Cameron’s preparation for his attempt to dive to the bottom of the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. Reports are that he is now attempting the dive in his one man submarine, described as a “vertical torpedo.”  If successful he will be the first person in over 50 years and only the third person in history to dive to the bottom of the the Challenger Deep, the deepest part of the ocean.  Thanks to Phil Leon of the heads-up.

James Cameron begins Mariana Trench deep-sea dive

The Costa Concordia’s “Black Box” – A Look at Voyage Data Recorders

Posted on by March 25, 2012

What really happened on the Costa Concordia in the final hours leading up to and following her grounding and sinking off Giglio on January 13, 2012?  The first step in definitively answering that question began in early March when an Italian judge directed court appointed experts to examine the ship’s voyage data recorder, the so called “black box.”  The examination is expected to take 90 days, so the first results will be presented to the court sometime in early May.

But exactly what is the “black box” taken off the Costa Concordia?  
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Recreating Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Epic Lifeboat Voyage

Posted on by March 24, 2012

In 1916, Ernest Shackleton and five sailors set off on an 1300 kilometer voyage to South Georgia Island, across some of roughest waters in the world, in the James Caird, a 6.9 meter lifeboat, in a desperate attempt to reach help and to arrange the rescue of the twenty two men left behind on Elephant Island.  Now, the Shackleton Epic Expedition led by Tim Jarvis has constructed a replica of the James Caird, named the Alexandra Shackleton, in honor of the explorer’s granddaughter.   The expedition will attempt to recreate Shackleton’s truly epic voyage later this year.  Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing along the news.

Polar explorer’s 800 mile lifeboat journey is recreated

An extraordinary adventure

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Japanese Fishing Trawler, Carried Away by Tsunami, Found Drifting Toward British Columbia

Posted on by March 24, 2012

Photo: Canadian Department of National Defense

A 150′ foot long fishing trawler carried away last March by the tsunami off the east coast of Japan has been spotted drifting in the Pacific Ocean, 120 miles off Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada.  About 5 million tons of debris were swept into the ocean in by the magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami which struck Japan.  The trawler is reported to have been used for squid fishing, and was moored in the port of Hachinohe, in the Aomori prefecture, when the tsunami hit.  Thanks to Rick Sterling on the Facebook “All Things Nautical” group for pointing it out.

Japanese boat washed away in tsunami spotted more than a year later