On June 23, the keel was laid for the Interlake Steamship‘s new Great Lakes bulk carrier at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding in Sturgeon Bay, WI. The 639 ft-long, 28,000-tonne Lake-Class self-unloading bulker is the first US flag self-propelled bulk carrier to be built in the Great Lakes in 35 years.
The ship’s name was revealed by Interlake chairman James R Barker who named it Mark W Barker, after his son. Barker said: “This ship is more than the steel assembled here by Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding.
“This ship represents Interlake’s determination to be an active and responsible participant in all aspects of Great Lakes trade.
We recently 
At the end of May, we 
For decades, schooners referred to as “windjammers” have sailed up and down the Maine coast carrying vacationers from May to October. This year, however, the pandemic has delayed the season and there are concerns that it may not start at all. 
While this may not appear to be the best time to start a new cruise venture, if all goes well, in the Spring of 2021, 
The 958-foot long, US flag container ship, Maersk Idaho is anchored off the coast of Virginia after several crew members tested positive for COVID-19. Maersk is working on a plan to evacuate the ship, bring the crew to a quarantine facility, clean the ship and then bring a new crew on board, said Patrick McCaffery, Maersk Line’s general counsel, as reported by the 
Every year, the Alaskan fishing industry attracts tens of thousands of migrant workers. In remote Bristol Bay, Alaska, between 10,000 and 15,000 fishermen come to work on the salmon boats plying the Bering Sea, while another 6,000 workers or so arrive to process the salmon brought ashore. Salmon fishing brings in $700 million each year to this remote, sparsely populated area. But, as reported by the 
A huge cloud of desert dust has blown off the Sahara and is bound across the Atlantic Ocean heading toward the United States. While dust plumes are not uncommon, this plume is exceptionally large and dense with the highest concentration of dust particles observed in 
Pullmantur Cruceros, a joint venture between Royal Caribbean and Cruises Investment Holding, has 
In mid-March, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) announced that the major cruise lines were 
Fifty years ago this November, the residents of Florence, Oregon 
The US government has now reversed the recommendation made by high ranking Navy officials that Capt. Brett Crozier, commander of the aircraft carrier 
The Clearwater 
On June 17, 1940, the HMT Lancastria was sunk by German bombers near the French port of Saint-Nazaire. An estimated 4,000 people died in the sinking. Fewer than 2,500 survived. It was the worst maritime disaster in British history, worse than the Titanic and the Lusitania combined. While often described as forgotten history, that is not accurate. Rather than being forgotten, the tragic sinking was largely covered up for almost 70 years. 
The $13 billion dollar aircraft carrier 
An updated repost from a few year’s back. One hundred and sixteen years ago today, the disaster on the 