The Coast Guard to suspend search for survivors
OCTOBER 7, 2015—The U.S. Coast Guard has told family members of the crew of the lost cargo ship El Faro that it will suspend the search for survivors at 7 PM ET.
Search Results for: container
NTSB launches go team to investigate El Faro loss
Yesterday the U.S. Coast Guard announced that the vessel, which was en route from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Juan, Puerto Rico, was lost in last week’s storm. The Coast Guard will participate in the NTSB’s investigation.
The team will be led by the NTSB’s Tom Roth-Roffy as investigator-in-charge. NTSB Vice Chairman Bella Dinh-Zarr is accompanying the team and will serve as the principal spokesperson during the on-scene phase of the investigation.
Congresswoman Corrine Brown (D. FL.) said that, as a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, she will be asking for “a complete investigation into this tragic incident.”
The Coast Guard said yesterday that search and rescue crews continued searching for possible survivors from the cargo ship El Faro Monday night, covering a total search area of more than 160,574 square nautical miles.While searching in the vicinity of the ship’s last known position 35 nautical miles northeast of Crooked Islands, Bahamas, the Coast Guard located a deceased person in a survival suit in the water.
A heavily damaged life boat with markings consistent with those on board the El Faro was also located Sunday. Additional items located by Coast Guard aircrews within a 225 square nautical mile search area include a partially submerged life raft, life jackets, life rings, cargo containers and an oil sheen Sunday.Coast Guard assets involved in Monday’s search include:
- Two Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, FloridaTwo Navy P-8 fixed wing airplanes
- One Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, Florida
- Coast Guard Cutter Northland, a 210-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Portsmouth, Virginia
- Coast Guard Cutter Resolute, a 210-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in St. Petersburg, Florida
- Coast Guard Cutter Charles Sexton, a 154-foot fast response cutter homeported in Key West, Florida.
- Three commercial tugboats
Sea and weather conditions during Monday’s search include one-foot seas and 15 knots winds with unrestricted visibility.All three Coast Guard cutters remained on scene to search through the night.
Crowley gets $130 million MSC contract
The contract will see Crowley provide full turnkey operation and management of the fleet, including crewing and scheduled/unscheduled repair and drydocking services initially for one year with four, additional one-year options. The turnover phase for the ships began on October 1.
Of these five vessels, two will remain berthed in Jacksonville and three will be homeported in Norfolk – all within the service area of Crowley’s local offices. This contract will have a positive economic impact through the creation of several new jobs in both Jacksonville and Norfolk. The ships – USNS 1st LT Harry L. Martin, USNS LCPL Roy M. Wheat, USNS SGT Matej Kocak, USNS PFC Eugene A. Obregon and the USNS MAJ Stephen W. Pless – will be used to transport cargo throughout the world in support of the U.S. military.
“Crowley is proud to have been selected to provide technical management for this government fleet,” says Crowley Government Services General Manager Paul Varghese. “This contract is a perfect fit for us, and would not be possible without the hard work and determination of our remarkable government team and the tremendous support we received from MSC.”
Coast Guard believes El Faro sank, searches for survivors
Coast Guard spokesman CAPT Mark Fedor said during a press conference in Miami this morning that one body was found in a survival suit in a 225-square mile debris field near the Bahamas. The body was “unidentifiable” and was not recovered. CAPT Fedor said the Coast Guard also recovered one of the ship’s two lifeboats with no one on board. He said that the Coast Guard was still hopeful of finding survivors among the 33 crew on board. Despite the difficult conditions of being subjected to 140 mph winds and 50-foot waves, “I’m not going to discount someone’s will to survive,” says Fedor.
According to Fedor, there were 46 survival suits on board and each lifeboat is certified to carry 43. “These are trained mariners and they know how to abandon ship.”
The search for survivors will continue with aircraft and commercial ships in the area.
The Coast Guard said Sunday evening that the search teams, which also include personnel and resources from U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy, have covered more than 70,000 square miles.
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, with involvement from the U.S. Coast Guard, is expected to conduct a full investigation. Fedor says the Coast Guard is also expected to conduct its own investigation.
The El Faro, owned by Tote Maritime, was built in 1974 and updated in 1992 and 2006. It was carrying 391 containers and 294 trailers and cars.
Debris field found near missing El Faro’s last position
OCTOBER 5, 2015—The U.S. Coast Guard is reporting that it has located a debris field of in the vicinity of the U.S.-flag containership El Faro’s last known position 35 nautical miles northeast
Update: Coast Guard finds life ring from El Faro
The El Faro, a 790-foot roll on, roll off, cargo ship, departed Jacksonville, Florida, Sept. 29, en route to San Juan.
At about 7:30 a.m. Thursday, watchstanders at the Coast Guard Atlantic Area command center in Portsmouth, VA, received an Inmarsat satellite notification stating the El Faro was beset by Hurricane Joaquin, had lost propulsion, and had a 15-degree list. The crew reported the ship had previously taken on water, but that all flooding had been contained.
No further communications have been received from the vessel
A Coast Guard HC-130 search and rescue crew from Air Station Clearwater, Florida, spotted the life ring 120 nautical miles northeast of Crooked Island, Bahamas. A Coast Guard MH-60 helicopter crew recovered the life ring and confirmed it belonged to the missing ship.
Search and rescue crews have searched more than 30,000 square-miles since Thursday.
Sea conditions in the search area yesterday were reported to be 20 to 40-feet with winds in excess to 100 knots. Visibility for search and rescue flying between 500 and 1,000 feet was reported to be less than one nautical mile at times.
Tim Nolan, President of TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico, issued the following statement regarding ongoing efforts to locate and communicate with the El Faro and her crew:
“This morning TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico’s second ship, the El Yunque, and a contracted tugboat reached the area between the last known vicinity of the El Faro and the location that the Coast Guard recovered a life ring yesterday and carried out a visual survey.
“The two vessels discovered a container, which appears to be from the El Faro, and observed what appears to be an oil sheen.
“At this time there has been no sighting of the El Faro or any life boats.
“TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico and the Coast Guard remain focused on the continuing search for the crew. The contracted tugs as well as other vessels transiting the area are also keeping a lookout for any sign of the ship.
Our thoughts and prayers remain with the 33 individuals aboard the ship and their families. They are our number one priority.”
A Coast Guard pilot searching for the missing containership, near the eye of hurricane Joaquin, recounts the weather conditions Oct. 3, 2015. The Coast Guard has been searching since Oct. 1, after losing communications with the El Faro.
U.S. Coast Guard video
USCG searches for TOTE ship caught by Hurricane Joaquin
The El Faro, a 735-foot TOTE Maritime RO/RO cargo ship, was en route to San Juan, Puerto Rico, from Jacksonville, FL. At about 7:30 a.m. Thursday, watchstanders at the Coast Guard Atlantic Area command center in Portsmouth, VA, received an Inmarsat satellite notification stating the El Faro was beset by Hurricane Joaquin, had lost propulsion, and had a 15-degree list.
The crew reported the ship had previously taken on water, but that all flooding had been contained.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard 7th District command center in Miami launched an HC-130 aircrew out of Clearwater, FL, to search for the El Faro.
As of this afternoon, Coast Guard watchstanders and rescue crews had still been been unable to reestablish communications with the El Faro crew.
Two Air Force C-130 Hurricane Hunter aircrews attempted to locate and reestablish communications with the El Faro unsuccessfully Thursday. Coast Guard crews remained on scene and continue search efforts today by both air and sea.
At a press conference today Coast Guard Captain Mark Fedor said the Coast Guard was pushing its assets to their operational limits in the search for the vessel and the 33 people on board.
Tim Nolan, President of TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico issued the following statement on the incident:
On September 29, the El Faro, one of TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico’s two ships departed Jacksonville en-route to San Juan Puerto Rico.
At the time of the El Faro’s departure, the vessel’s officers and crew were monitoring what was then Tropical Storm Joaquin. As of 720am EST on Thursday October 1, TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico lost all communication with the El Faro. The US Coast Guard was immediately notified and since then we have been unable to reestablish communication.
There are a number of possible reasons for the loss of communications among them the increasing severity of Hurricane Joaquin.
TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico’s primary concern is for the safety and well-being of the 33 individuals on board.
We are working to ensure clear and frequent communications with their families and loved ones as we learn more.We have reached out to the families of those impacted and have established open lines of communication to provide them with timely updates. Our thoughts and prayers are with the individuals and their families.
TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico is working closely with the US Coast Guard and all available resources to establish communication by whatever means possible.
ME-GI for first Crowley ConRo passes milestone test
The engine is the first of two 8S70ME-C8.2-GI units for delivery to VT Halter Marine, Pascagoula, MS, for installation in the two 2,400 TEU ConRo ships it is building for Crowley Maritime Corporation.
The vessels will be two of the world’s first LNG-powered ConRo ships, with container Lift-on/Lift-off (LO/LO) and vehicle Roll-on/Roll-off (RO/RO) loading. Designed to travel at speeds up to 22 knots, they will be 219.5 m long, 32.3 m wide and have a deep draft of 10 m. In addition to carrying 2,400 TEU of containers they will be able to carry nearly 400 vehicles in an enclosed Roll-on/Roll-off garage.
Crowley ordered the ME-GI engines, along with three MAN 9L28/32DF auxiliary engines for each vessel, in early-2014. The company selected the high-pressure, Diesel-cycle ME-GI engines because of their high efficiency and power concentration. The ME-GI’s ability to avoid derating, and its negligible methane slip, also contributed to its selection.
Crowley reports that the newbuildings will reduce the amount of CO2 emissions attributable to each container by approximately 38%.
The ships will meet or exceed all regulatory requirements and will have the CLEAN notation, which requires limitation of operational emissions and discharges, as well as the Green Passport, both issued by DNV GL.
The ME-GI engine
The ME-GI engine is the culmination of many years’ work, and gives shipowners and operators the option of utilizing fuel or gas depending on relative price and availability, as well as environmental considerations.
The ME-GI uses high-pressure gas injection that allows it to maintain the numerous positive attributes of MAN B&W low-speed engines that have made them the default choice of the maritime community. The ME-GI is not affected by the multiple de-ratings, fuel-quality adjustments or large methane-slip issues that have been seen with other dual-fuel solutions.
MAN Diesel & Turbo sees significant opportunities ahead for gas-fueled tonnage as fuel prices rise and exhaust emission limits tighten. Research indicates that the ME-GI engine delivers significant reductions in CO2, NOx and SOx emissions. Its negligible methane slip makes it even more environmentally friendly
An ME-LGI counterpart that uses LPG, methanol and other liquid gases is also available, and has already been ordered.
Factory Acceptance Test attendees pictured in front of the ME-GI engine at MES’s Tamano Works
Maersk 19,600 TEU giants to have waste heat recovery
DSME has placed an order with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Marine Machinery & Engine Co., Ltd. (MHI-MME) to supply the ships with its proprietary system for generating electric power by maximizing recovery and utilization of exhaust gas waste energy from marine diesel engines.
The systems ordered for the Maersk newbuildings takes the total number of MHI-MME’s WHRS units ordered to 87 since the system’s market introduction in 2010. Maersk has thus far been the biggest customer the system, with 69 units ordered for installation in four series of ships, including its 18,300 TEU Triple-E vessels.
The WHRS is MHI-MME’s best-selling product and the company holds a greater than 90% share of the WHRS global market.
The schematic below shows the principles of the system.
Aker Philadelphia cuts steel for Matson 3,600 TEU box ships
In 2013, Matson subsidiary Matson Navigation Company, Inc. signed a contract with Aker Philadelphia Shipyard Inc. (APSI) to build the two new ships for a price of $418 million for the pair (see earlier story). Since signing the contracts, engineering, planning and procurement work have been underway.
The shipbuilder is expected to deliver the ships in the third and fourth quarters of 2018.
The 850-foot long, 3,600 TEU vessels will be Matson’s largest ships and the largest Jones Act containerships ever constructed. Despite their size, they are designed to accommodate future needs by being able to navigate safely into some of Hawaii’s smaller ports.
They will also be faster, designed to operate at speeds in excess of 23 knots, helping ensure timely delivery of goods in Hawaii.
The new vessels will incorporate a number of “green ship technology” features including a more fuel efficient hull design, dual fuel engines that can be adapted to use liquefied natural gas (LNG), environmentally safe double hull fuel tanks and fresh water ballast systems.
“These new ships are the future for Hawaii shipping and will bring a new level of efficiency and effectiveness to our service,” said Matt Cox, president and CEO, Matson. “The substantial investment in new technology underscores Matson’s long-term commitment to Hawaii and our desire to serve the islands in the best, most environmentally friendly way into the future.”
The first ships to be delivered by Aker Philadelphia were four Jones Act containerships for Matson delivered between 2003 and 2006.
“We are excited to partner with Matson again and return to our construction roots building containerships,” said Aker Philadelphia President and CEO Steinar Nerbovik. “It’s an exciting time to be a shipbuilder as we embark on simultaneously building containerships and product tankers, fulfilling our commitments to customers and shareholders.”