Superyacht Wheels — the Other Jerry Falwell Scandal

Posted on by August 30, 2020

Yacht Wheels

We recently posted about the arrest of Steven Bannon, ex-senior advisor to Trump, aboard Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui’s 152′ yacht, cruising in Long Island Sound. Earlier in August, another mega-yacht was central in an unfolding scandal that brought down yet another major Trump supporter.

In early August, a photo of Liberty University president, Jerry Falwell, began circulating on the internet. It showed Fallwell with his arm around a young woman who was not his wife. Falwell was holding a glass filled with a dark liquid. Both Falwell and the woman, who was later identified as Falwell’s wife’s personal assistant, had their pants unzipped. The photograph was reported to have been taken on board the 164′ luxury yacht, Wheels, owned by the billionaire NASCAR mogul Rick Hendrick.

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Banksy’s Rescue Boat Calls for Help

Posted on by August 29, 2020

The two items in the news appeared within hours of each other. The first, dated August 28, 17:09, was headlined, “Street artist Banksy funds pink boat to rescue migrants in the Mediterranean.” The second dated August 29, 5:45 AM was titled, “Banksy’s migrant rescue boat says overloaded, stranded at sea.”

The story behind the headlines is that the British street artist Banksy has funded a 31-meter boat to be used to rescue migrants in distress in the Mediterranean.  The boat is named Louise Michel, after a French feminist anarchist, and began operations last week. The former French Navy craft, daubed in pink and white, is captained by Pia Klemp and crewed by a team of rescue professionals from across Europe. 

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Photos of Bow of Bulker Wakashio Being Scuttled Off Mauritius

Posted on by August 28, 2020

Photo: Mauritius National Crisis Committee

The government of Mauritius announced last Monday that “the planned sinking of the stem (forward) section of the [bulk carrier Wakashio] has been completed and at around 3.30pm was no longer visible on the sea surface. While some sources referred to the location of the scuttling as a “mystery” in that no coordinates were provided in the government press release, video clips of the sinking gave the location as 20°22’57.183″S, 58°01’07.415″E, or roughly 14 nautical miles off the Mauritius coast in deep water.

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Did an Arsonist Torch the USS Bonhomme Richard?

Posted on by August 27, 2020

A fire broke out on the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard on July 12 while the ship was dockside at the Naval Base San Diego. Now, the Navy is investigating whether arson was the cause of the fire. A sailor from the ship is a prime suspect. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) are leading the investigation. No motive has been identified and no one has been charged.  

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Fire on Coast Guard Cutter Healy Disables Half of US Icebreaker Fleet

Posted on by August 26, 2020

US Coast Guard Cutter Healy, a medium icebreaker, is limping back to its homeport in Seattle after suffering a machinery space fire on Aug. 18, the Coast Guard announced on Tuesday. When the fire broke out, Healy was underway on a combined science and national security mission in the Arctic. The operation has been canceled.

“Healy was 60 nautical miles off of Seward, Alaska, en route to the Arctic when an electrical fire was reported at 9:30 p.m. A fire team disconnected the affected motor, and the fire was confirmed extinguished by 9:56 p.m. The cause of the fire is currently unknown,” read a statement from the Coast Guard. “Due to the fire, Healy’s starboard propulsion motor and shaft are no longer operational, and the ship is transiting back to its homeport in Seattle for further inspection and repairs.”

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Blount Small Ship Adventures Done in By Pandemic

Posted on by August 25, 2020

Grande Caribe in the Erie Canal, Photo: Blount

Covid-19 has claimed its first U.S, flagged cruise operator. Citing the pandemic, Blount announced that it is ending its cruise operations and is selling its three small overnight cruise ships. The family will focus on its shipbuilding activities. 

“It was really just the requirement that all the cruise lines had to shut down for Covid, and at this point, we decided not to start again,” said Marcia Blount, president and CFO of the Warren, R.I., company. “What we really decided was to focus on building.”

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Drone Video of Mayflower II Returning to Plymouth

Posted on by August 24, 2020

Here is wonderful drone footage from Ryan Smith of the Mayflower II transiting the Cape Cod Canal and then arriving in its homeport of Plymouth, MS. Her arrival had been delayed by the pandemic and then by Tropical Storm Isaias. This is the final video of a series shot and edited by Ryan of the Mayflower II‘s trip from Mystic Seaport to Plymouth, with a diversion to New Bedford due to the storm and a quick stop at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.  To watch these videos click here: Mayflower II playlist.

The Mayflower Returns! 4K Drone Experience!

Back to Back Hurricanes Poised to Hit the Gulf of Mexico

Posted on by August 23, 2020

2020 has been quite a year so far. A global pandemic, economic collapse, a derecho in the Midwest, and out of control wildfires in California. What next?

Now, for the first time in recorded history, we may see two hurricanes moving into the Gulf of Mexico simultaneously. Tropical Storm Marco and Tropical Storm Laura are both expected to strengthen to hurricane strength and to hit the Gulf Coast within hours of each other. 

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Icebreaker Makes Unplanned Open-Water Arctic Detour

Posted on by August 22, 2020

Photo: Janek Uin

The Associated Press is reporting that the  RV Polarstern, a German icebreaker carrying scientists on a year-long international expedition in the high Arctic, has reached the North Pole after making an unplanned detour there due to lighter-than-usual sea ice conditions.

Expedition leader Markus Rex said Wednesday the icebreaker was able to reach the geographic North Pole because of large openings in sea ice above Greenland, where shipping would normally be too difficult.

“We made fast progress in a few days,” Rex told The Associated Press. “It’s breathtaking — at times we had open water as far as the eye could see.”

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Steve Bannon Arrested on Chinese Billionaire’s Yacht, Lady May

Posted on by August 21, 2020

Steve Bannon, ex-Trump adviser and campaign chief executive, was arrested on Wednesday, aboard the Lady May, a 152′ aluminum luxury yacht, owned by exiled Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui. The yacht was cruising in Long Island Sound near Westport, CT, when it was boarded by federal postal inspectors and special agents from the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan.  Bannon told others he had been cruising aboard the yacht for months.

Bannon has been charged with defrauding donors to a private fund-raising effort called We Build the Wall, which was intended to bolster one of the president’s signature initiatives: erecting a barrier on the Mexican border. Bannon is accused of stealing more than $1 million from donors.

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Sedov Sets Off On Trans-Arctic Voyage

Posted on by August 20, 2020

The 99-year-old four-masted steel bark Sedov is sailing home by an unusual route. She is sailing North from Vladivostok  and transiting the Arctic by the Northern Sea Route to reach her home port of Kaliningrad. Crossing the Arctic will be the culmination of a grand voyage of more than 25,000 nautical miles sailed by the Sedov since November 1, 2019. 

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Update: MV Wakashio — Ship Breaks Up, Cleanup Continues, Bow Under Tow, & Captain Arrested

Posted on by August 19, 2020

The Capesize bulk carrier Wakashio, which ran hard aground on a reef in Mauritius on July 25, broke in two this Sunday. The bow of the ship has been taken under tow and moved away from the reef. Reports are that the bow section will be sunk in deep water although there are varying accounts as to where. Some accounts suggest the bow will be taken to India to be scrapped.

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Marvin Creamer, Dies at 104, Circumnavigated Without Navigational Instruments

Posted on by August 18, 2020

Martin Creamer, who died recently at the age of 104, was a retired professor of geography at Glassboro State College, now Rowan University, in Glassboro, N.J. He is best remembered, however, for sailing around the world on a 36-foot sailboat without the use of navigational instruments. That is without the use of a watch, a radio, a compass, a sextant, or GPS. He is believed to be the only person ever to do so.

At 66, Creamer set off on December 21, 1982, aboard his steel-hulled boat — the 36-foot Globe Star.”  His 513-day journey would entail nearly a year at sea, plus time in ports for repairs and reprovisioning.

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Update: Historic Tanker Mary A. Whalen’s New/Old Engine Arrives in Brooklyn

Posted on by August 17, 2020

In May of this year, we posted Scrambling to Save an Engine for the Historic Tanker Mary A. Whalen. The post described how the historic tanker Mary A. Whalen was in dire need of parts to restore its diesel engine. A powerplant in Missouri had a compatible diesel. All that was necessary was to raise the money to move the engine cross-country before the power plant needed to dispose of the engine.

Thanks to the support of generous donors and despite the deadly pandemic, enough was raised to rescue the engine and truck it to Brooklyn. The new/old engine will be key to restoring the Mary A. Whalen‘s Fairbanks Morse 37E12, six-cylinder, direct reversing engine. Congratulations to Portside New York and thanks to all those who helped make it happen.

Belugas Little White and Little Grey Closer to Release Into Open Water Sanctuary

Posted on by August 16, 2020

Earlier this year, we posted  “The Incredible Journey of Belugas Little White and Little Grey,”  about the 6,000-mile transport in June 2019 of the two whales by air, land, and sea from an aquarium in Shanghai to a new home in Iceland in the world’s first beluga whale sanctuary.

After just over a year in Iceland, the two belugas have now moved closer to the open water sanctuary. From the sanctuary press release:

The SEA LIFE Trust is delighted to confirm that two beluga whales, Little Grey and Little White, are now safely in their new sea sanctuary care area at Klettsvik Bay in Iceland. The moving of the whales into the world’s first open water sanctuary for belugas was completed on Friday 8th August 2020 at 12.30 local time. Continue reading →

Flattop with a Deckload of History Arrives at Pearl Harbor

Posted on by August 15, 2020

USS Essex, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship, recently arrived in Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor. Rather than carrying just helicopters, MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors, or even F-35B Lightning II fighter jets, the ship had a deck load of historic World War II warplanes. The planes are set to take part in a commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII from August 29 to September 2.

The Essex carried a B-25 bomber, two PBY Catalina flying boats, an SNJ/AT-6 Texan, four AT-6 Texans, an FM2 Wildcat, F8F Bearcat, Stearman biplane, TBM Avenger, P-51 Mustang and a T-28 Trojan. 

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Wakashio Grounding — the Birthday Party & the Search for Wi-Fi

Posted on by August 21, 2020

How does a modern ship with radar and GPS manage to run hard aground on a well-marked reef?  In the case of the Capesize bulker Wakashio that ran aground on the reef at Pointe-d’Esny off Mauritius on the evening of July 25, the answer appears to be a birthday party and an attempt to pick up a wifi signal. 

L’Express.mu reports that investigators from Mauritius have learned from interviews with the ship’s crew that just before the grounding there was a birthday party for one of the ship’s crew. Also, the ship’s course was changed to bring it closer to the island in an attempt to pick up a wifi signal. 

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Sailing Cargo Ship Kwai Hauls a Record 170 Tons of Plastic & Ghost Nets From Pacific

Posted on by August 13, 2020

In June of last year, we posted about the sailing cargo ship Kwai that had collected more than 40 tons of plastic waste and “ghost nets” from the Pacific Garbage Patch. Ghost nets are abandoned fishing gear that continues to drift, catching and killing thousands of marine animals. 

The Kwai, backed by the non-profit Ocean Voyages Institute, is setting new records for ocean cleanup. During a voyage in June, the ship retrieved 103 tons of plastic waste. Most recently, in a voyage ending in early August, the Kwai added 67 tons, for a total of 170 tons of plastic waste and nets removed from the Pacific. The haul quadruples the group’s previous year’s record. The Kwai’s endeavors are believed to represent the largest open ocean clean-up in history. Overall, the Ocean Voyages Institute is committed to removing 1 million pounds of plastic from the ocean.

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Capesize Bulker MV Wakashio Aground on Mauritius Reef, May Break Up

Posted on by August 13, 2020


On July 25, the MV Wakashio ran hard aground on a coral reef in Mauritius. The large capesize bulker was bound From China to Brazil to load cargo and was empty, operating in ballast when it struck the reef. On August 6, after 13 days aground, the ship began to leak fuel oil. Over 1,000 tonnes of 4,000 tonnes aboard leaked into the pristine waters. The grounding took place off of Pointe d’Esny, near the marine park of Blue Bay. Mauritius is home to world-renowned coral reefs, and tourism is a crucial part of its economy.

Mitsui OSK, the ship operator, supported by a French pollution-control team and the Mauritius Coast Guard, has been working to pump out the remaining fuel oil before the ship breaks up. Today, the Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth announced that almost all the fuel oil remaining aboard the ship has been pumped out.

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