Sri Lanka and the Environmental Aftermath of the X-Press Pearl Fire and Sinking

Posted on by June 4, 2021

Pollution from the container ship X-Press Pearl is being described as potentially the worst marine ecological disaster in Sri Lankan history. The ship carried 25 tonnes of nitric acid, along with other chemicals and cosmetics, when it caught fire on May 20. Many of the ship’s 1,486 containers tumbled into the sea before the huge blaze was brought under control earlier this week. The vessel sank on June 2, as it was being towed to deeper waters.

BBC reports that millions of plastic pellets from a damaged container, which are the raw material for shopping bags, have already coated stretches of Sri Lanka’s western coastline. Worst-hit areas include some of the country’s most pristine beaches close to the city of Negombo. Experts say the pellets still in the sea could travel as far as India, Indonesia and Somalia.

There are now concerns that the bunker fuel aboard the ship will further damage the shoreline. Continue reading →

Free Tickets to South Street’s Windjammer Wavertree, Fri-Sun Through October 2021

Posted on by June 3, 2021

The South Street Seaport Museum is offering FREE tickets to tour the 1885-built windjammer Wavertree on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through October 2021, with timed entry, from 11am-5pm at Pier 16 on Manhattan’s East River, (Fulton and South Streets). 

From the Seaport Museum’s website:

Visits will be self-guided along a set route and will include access to the main deck and quarter deck. Learn how people worked and lived aboard a 19th-century cargo sailing vessel, from the captain to the ship’s officers, cooks, and crew. Then visit the cargo hold and stand atop the viewing platform where you can take in the massive main cargo area.

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Iranian Navy’s Largest Ship Catches Fire and Sinks in Gulf of Oman

Posted on by June 2, 2021

Kharg, an Iranian Navy training and logistics ship, caught fire in the Gulf of Oman in the early hours of Wednesday local time. After more than 20 hours of firefighting and rescue operations, the ship subsequently sank near the port of Jask. All 400 crew were rescued, with 33 reported injured. The Tasnim news agency, citing a statement from Iran’s navy, said that the ship had been deployed to international waters to participate in a naval exercise when “one of its systems” caught fire. The fire was reported to have started in the ship’s engine room.

Kharg, the largest ship in the Iranian Navy by tonnage, was a converted fleet oiler and had been in service almost 40 years.

The cause of the fire and sinking is the subject of considerable speculation. Continue reading →

Britain to Build National Flagship to Promote Trade

Posted on by June 1, 2021

Interesting news from the UK. Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, announced the construction of a new national flagship intended to promote British businesses around the world. 

The Prime Minister said in the announcement:

  • This new national flagship will be the first vessel of its kind in the world, reflecting the UK’s burgeoning status as a great, independent maritime trading nation.
  • Every aspect of the ship, from its build to the businesses it showcases on board, will represent and promote the best of British – a clear and powerful symbol of our commitment to be an active player on the world stage.

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A Virtual New York Fleet Week 2021

Posted on by May 31, 2021

For the second year running, in-person Fleet Week in New York, traditionally beginning in the week before and running through the Memorial Day Weekend, was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A virtual Fleet Week celebration has been ongoing, however, on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Below is a short view about this year’s virtual New York Fleet Week.

New York Fleet Week 2021

Destroyer Escort USS Slater Reopening on Memorial Day

Posted on by May 30, 2021

Museum ships are slowly reopening.  The USS Slater on the Albany waterfront, the last Destroyer Escort afloat in America, is set to open to the public on Memorial Day, Monday, May 31st. After Memorial Day the ship will operate normal hours Wednesday through Sunday, from 10 am to 4 pm.

Guided tours take place every 30 minutes. All visitors and volunteers are required to wear a mask while aboard Slater. Tour groups will be kept small, and the ship will be disinfected regularly. No reservations are required.

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Celebrating Lighthouse Tender Lilac’s 88th Birthday in Audio and Visual Arts

Posted on by May 29, 2021

The historic lighthouse tender USCGC Lilac recently turned 88.  Lilac is America’s only surviving steam-powered lighthouse tender and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

To celebrate her birthday, two temporary art installations featuring historic photography and dramatic audio have been set up. LILAC 88 consists of an onboard paper mural to celebrate the history of the Lilac on Pier 25 in Lower Manhattan. This paper mural displays large-scale historic images displayed on the ship’s stack in order to make the ship visible from afar and attract public attention to the Lilac over the Memorial Day holiday.

The audio installation, “Aids to Navigation” is a dramatic composition by Untapped New York’s Chief Experience Officer Justin Rivers. It centers around the ship’s second commander, Captain Charles Lewis and is intended to serve as a mini-dramatic tour of Lilac. Captain Lewis is voiced by actor Robert Dalton and the audio piece was directed and mixed by director, Michael Joseph Ormond. The public will be able to access the experience via a QR code near the stern of the boat and can enjoy the entire installation from Pier 25.  To listen to “Aids to Navigation” online, click here.

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Tall Ship Falls of Clyde Gets Brief Reprieve

Posted on by May 28, 2021

The Falls of Clyde, the only remaining iron-hulled four-masted full-rigged ship and the only surviving sail-driven oil tanker in the world, has been given a short reprieve from being scrapped or scuttled.

In late April, the Hawaii Department of Transportation’s Harbors Division put out a request for proposals for the “removal of the derelict sailing vessel Falls of Clyde from Honolulu Harbor.”  The bids were due at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 21. 

The Department of Transportation has now revoked the request for proposal to remove the ship.  The DOT said in a review, “it turns out that not all state processes are upheld.” Therefore, the RFP was canceled “with great care.”

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Zoom Presentation — Tanker Mary A. Whalen’s Game Changing Supreme Court Case

Posted on by May 27, 2021

PortSide NewYork is hosting a fascinating virtual talk with Captain Lawrence Brennan, a Fordham law Professor, and PortSide Executive Director Carolina Salguero about the Supreme Court decision US vs RELIABLE TRANSFER involving PortSide’s historic ship Mary A. Whalen.  Brennan and Salguero will be on the Mary A. Whalen together, allowing you to see some of the ship. 

The talk will be on Zoom on Thursday, June 10, 2021, from to  This virtual lunchtime presentation is tailored to a general audience and landlubbers, not just admiralty lawyers. There will be several opportunities for Q&A.

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80 Years Ago Today, Wavy Navy Pilots Flying Stringbags Cripple the Mighty Bismarck

Posted on by May 26, 2021

Bismarck

On the evening of May 26, 1941, eighty years ago today, a squadron of obsolete biplanes flown by volunteer pilots succeeded in crippling the Bismarck, the mightiest battleship in the German Kriegsmarine. A revised repost.

The Bismarck was about to escape to the safety of Brest in occupied France. Two days before, in the Battle of Denmark Strait, the German battleship sank the British battle cruiser HMS Hood in six minutes. Then, after a chase of several days, pursued by a large British flotilla, the Bismarck was about to get away.  

On the stormy evening of May 26, in heavy seas and only an hour’s worth of daylight left to stop the German ship, a squadron of fifteen Fairey Swordfish biplanes was launched from the carrier HMS Ark Royal.  The pilots of the Swordfish biplanes were all members of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, a corps of civilian volunteers who served alongside Royal Navy and Royal Navy Reserve personnel. The wavy stripes on RNVR officers’ sleeves differentiated them from RN/RNR officers, and gave the group the nickname, the “Wavy Navy.”  

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Update: Tall Ship Zebu Declared a Wreck

Posted on by May 25, 2021

Attempts to salvage the historic tall ship Zebu have failed. Last week, the 100′ long brigantine, built in Sweden in 1938, broke from its moorings and drifted onto the Holyhead New Harbour breakwater in Wales, where she became hard aground. Attempts to save the ship were thwarted by a storm that hit Holyhead on Friday, with winds of up to 70 miles per hour, subjecting the already damaged ship to a horrendous pounding by both wind and sea. Zebu suffered further devastating damage in the storm. The captain then had to make the difficult decision to declare Zebu a wreck. Nature had now had the final say.

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From a Sea of Troubles, Navy Charts New Course Ahead

Posted on by May 24, 2021

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday aboard the littoral combat ship USS Detroit

In January of this year, while speaking before the annual Surface Navy Association symposium, US Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday was blunt. He said, “I don’t mean to be dramatic, but I feel like if the Navy loses its head, if we go off course and we take our eyes off those things we need to focus on, I think we may not be able to recover in this century.”

Now, as the Biden administration readies a Navy budget proposal this week to send to lawmakers. Adm. Gilday insists that the Navy is on a “positive trajectory” but that it will have to rebuild confidence under congressional scrutiny as it prepares a new strategic plan that’ll include another long-term investment: unmanned vehicles.

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Hope Reef, Start of the World’s Largest Coral Reef Restoration Program

Posted on by May 23, 2021

What does cat food have to do with coral reefs? Mars Petcare catfood brand SHEBA®  has partnered with The Nature Conservancy to develop what it claims is the world’s largest coral restoration program, expected to cover more than 185,000 square meters around the world by the end of 2029.

Earlier this month, the partner organizations unveiled the first images and videos of ‘Sheba Hope Reef’, the starting location for the global initiative. Work to restore the reef, off the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, began two years ago and, in that time, coral cover has increased from, 5% to 55%. The reef, which can be seen on Google Earth, has been built to spell the word H-O-P-E and is intended as a symbol to show the world how positive change can happen within our lifetime.

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Ocean Revival Adventures – the World’s Most Dangerous Row

Posted on by May 22, 2021

While getting our boat ready to move to her summer mooring, I had the good fortune to meet Ian Clinton and Simon Chalk, members of the Ocean Revival Adventures crew, waiting with their ocean rowing boats at Liberty Landing in New York harbor for a suitable weather window to set off on what has been dubbed the “world’s most dangerous row.”

From their website:  Ocean Revival 2020 is a team of serving and former serving Royal Marine Commandos, who have fought alongside each other in 45 Commando. They have now teamed up to take the fight against plastic by rowing across the North Atlantic Ocean, rowing a route that has never been completed before and one that is statistically the most dangerous and arduous ocean row to attempt.

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Update: Golden Ray Salvage Delayed by Fire

Posted on by May 21, 2021

The salvage job to remove the car carrier Golden Ray that rolled on its side as it departed the Port of Brunswick, GA, in September 2019 while carrying about 4,200 vehicles, was originally planned to take around eight weeks and to be finished by last Christmas. Now, months behind schedule, the project continues to face new challenges. Salvors using cutting torches sparked a significant fire last Friday that wasn’t extinguished until Monday. There were no reported injuries to the salvors or firefighters.

Marine Log reports that naval architects and response engineers are assessing the fire’s impact on the structure of the remaining wreck and the custom-fabricated lifting structures welded to its top. Meantime, wreck removal personnel continue to assess, repair, and replace equipment on the VB-10000 heavy lift vessel.

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Last Ditch Appeal to Save the Tall Ship Falls of Clyde from Scrapping or Scuttling

Posted on by May 20, 2021

Supporters in Scotland are mounting a last-ditch effort to save the Falls of Clyde from scrapping or scuttling in Hawaii. The Falls of Clyde, launched in 1878 in Port Glasgow, Scotland, is the only remaining iron-hulled four-masted full-rigged ship and the only surviving sail-driven oil tanker in the world.  

In late April, the Hawaii Department of Transportation’s Harbors Division put out a request for proposals for the “removal of the derelict sailing vessel Falls of Clyde from Honolulu Harbor.”  The bids are due at 10 a.m. Friday.

Continue reading →

Arthur Beale: London Chandlery Closing after 500 Years, Victim of the Pandemic and High Rents

Posted on by May 19, 2021

London’s yacht-chandler Arthur Beale will close its doors on June 24, after being in business for more than 500 years. Located on Shaftesbury Avenue, in what is now London’s West End, the store is shutting down due to high rents and the impact of the pandemic.

Originally founded by rope-maker, John Buckinghams, sometime around 1500, no one knows how old the business is exactly. In 1890, Arthur Beale joined the company as an office boy. The shop was re-named after him in the early 1900s.

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Master Hawaiian Navigator Chad Kalepa Baybayan Dies at 65

Posted on by May 18, 2021

Chad Kālepa Baybayan, a revered Hawaiian navigator and captain of the Polynesian voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa, died on April 8 while visiting family in Seattle. He was 64. His daughter Kala Tanaka said the cause was a heart attack.

Chad Kalepa Baybayan, part of the Hawaiian renaissance of Polynesian voyaging, was one of only five Hawaiians along with 11 Micronesians initiated in 2007 into Pwo, a 2,000-year-old society of deep-sea navigators, by Master Navigator Mau Piailug of Satawal.

Beginning in the late 1970s, Baybayan sailed on Hokule’a for more than 40 years. He also served as captain and navigator on the voyaging canoes Hawaiiloa and Hokualakai. He sailed on major voyages in the South Pacific, the West Coast of North America, Micronesia, and Japan.

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Historic Tall Ship Zebu Aground, Flooded, on Holyhead Breakwater

Posted on by May 17, 2021

This has been a terrible few days for the historic tall ship Zebu.  On Thursday, the 100′ long brigantine, built in Sweden in 1938, encountered unspecified difficulties and had to be towed out of shipping lanes off Wales by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). The ship was towed to an anchorage at Holyhead.

On Saturday, the ship broke from its moorings and drifted onto the Holyhead New Harbour breakwater, where she became hard aground. A rescue mission was launched by HM Coastguards’ Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre – but was ultimately unsuccessful. The ship heeled over as the tide fell, rolling more than 45 degrees and subsequently flooding.

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Dutch Shipyard to Build Canopée, French “Rocket Ship” with Wing Sails

Posted on by May 16, 2021

The Dutch shipyard Neptune Marine has begun construction of the sailing cargo vessel Canopée, which will transport Ariane 6 rockets from Europe to the launch site in Kourou in French Guyana. The ship will feature 1,500 square meter sails to lower fuel consumption and emissions.

The cutting of steel was started just before last Christmas and the first bottom sections are under construction. The outfitting completion will be executed at Neptune Hardinxveld. Delivery of the vessel is scheduled end of 2022 after a series of trials and tests.

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