Indian Navy’s stealth Frigate, INS Talwar is presently deployed for Op Sankalp commemorating the 3rd continuous year of Indian Navy’s presence in the Gulf for protection of India’s Maritime Interests.
In the milieu of the deteriorating security situation in the Gulf region, post attacks on merchant ships in the Gulf of Oman in June 2019, Indian Navy had commenced Maritime Security Operations, code named ‘Op SANKALP’, in the Gulf Region on 19 June 2019 to ensure safe passage of Indian Flag Vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.
This operation is being progressed in close coordination with all stakeholders including Ministry of Defence, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and DG, Shipping.
Indian Navy continues to monitor the situation in the Gulf region and is maintaining presence in the region to ensure security of our sea borne trade and the safety of Indian Flag Merchant Vessels transiting through the region. The Indian Navy stands committed to protection of the nation’s Maritime Interests.
Ten armed men have reportedly carried out a heist in the Gulf of Mexico, stealing equipment, tools, materials and other items from a Campeche Bay oil platform, that is owned by Pemex.
According to information, the armed group arrived in three vessels, forcing the hostages, including employees of Pemex and its contractor Evya, to load them with various goods they stole from the site.
The navy’s maritime traffic control center was notified of the crime about 20 minutes after the heist had ended, and luckily there were no reports of injuries.
Pemex has not yet reacted to reports of an assault, but local media inform that Pemex sources confirmed the incident.
According to sources, a group of at least five heavily armed people illegally boarded the ship off the coast of Dos Bocas, Tabasco, obtaining loot consisting of tools, communication equipment and 35 autonomous breathing apparatus.
The attack took place when personnel warned of the presence of a boat with an outboard motor in the vicinity of the ship. The pirates boarded the ship carrying weapons, firing several shots into the air to intimidate the crew.
No crew was injured, although they pointed out that the insecurity that exists in the Gulf of Mexico is increasing, which is why fear grows for the integrity of the workers who work, not only on the boats , but also on offshore platforms.
(www.MaritimeCyprus.com) The idea of a European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) originated in the late 1990s along with a number of other important European maritime safety initiatives. EMSA was set up as a regulatory agency that would provide a major source of support to the European Commission and the member states in the field of maritime safety, security and prevention of pollution from ships.
EMSA’s activities:
providing technical and scientific assistance to the member states and the European Commission in the proper development and implementation of EU legislation on maritime safety, security, prevention of pollution by ships and maritime transport administrative simplification
monitoring the implementation of EU legislation through visits and inspections
improving cooperation with and between member states
building capacity of national competent authorities
providing operational assistance, including developing, managing and maintaining maritime services related to ships, ship monitoring and enforcement
carrying out operational preparedness, detection and response tasks with respect to pollution caused by ships and marine pollution by oil and gas installations
at the request of the European Commission, providing technical operational assistance to non-EU countries around relevant sea basins.
This publication hinges around our five strategic areas of action – sustainability, safety,
security, simplification and surveillance – and our four-fold role of service provider,
reliable partner, international reference and knowledge hub. Through this structured
approach, we share how we have delivered on the aims and ambitions set out in our
roadmap that is the Single Programming Document 2021-2023.
Three days after a fire at Podickory Point marina on Chesapeake Bay’s western shore destroyed two boats and damaged three more, a large fire broke out at Great Oak Landing marina on the eastern shore on board a motor boat.
Two occupants on board the 42ft motor boat were awoken by the fire and briefly attempted to put the blaze before evacuating the boat.
The Chestertown Volunteer Fire Company was first on the scene and reported: “Just as the crews started to hit this fire with hose streams, it’s believed the vessel’s fuel cell was compromised. Before being driven back by hose streams, a large fire ball ensued which briefly engulfed several firefighters. Thanks to personal protective equipment in use and properly adorned, there were no injuries.”
According to the Chestertown Volunteer Fire Company, a short time after firefighting operations had commenced, fire boats began to arrive. Unfortunately, due to extensive fire damage and the volume of water needed to control the fire, the vessel rapidly sank in its slip.
There were 35 firefighters at the incident and no reported injuries. Crews deployed 300ft of harbour boom around the incident to contain the leaking fuel. Clean up of the spilled fuel will be the responsibility of a private contractor. An origin and cause investigation will be difficult, as the vessel is currently underwater. If possible, it will have to wait until the vessel can be raised.
Members of the South Korean military were called out to drive tractor-trailer trucks in an effort to keep containers moving as talks in the week-old truckers’ strike broke down. Government and industry are calling on the truckers to return to work as reports grow over the impact on South Korea’s economy, manufacturing and ports.
The military working with the Ministry of Transport assigned members to begin driving the trucks. According to a report on Reuters, some 100 cargo trucks being driven by the military are being used to move containers in and out of the major ports. They are trying to help elevate space problems for manufacturers and at the ports as 6,600 or more unionized truck drivers remained off the job for a seventh day. Pictures showed police lines also guarding the roads to prevent the strikers from attempting to interfere with the trucks.
The fourth round of talks between the union and the government collapsed on Sunday after some reports indicated that they were near a tentative agreement. Korean media is saying that the ministry had committed to bringing up the strikers’ demands in the legislative process if the drivers agreed to go back to work. They after demanding an extension on a minimum wage program launched during the pandemic but due to expire this December. Media reports indicate that the shipping industry is strongly opposed to the extension of the minimum wage program.
Government officials said on Monday that the strike has already caused more than $1 billion in damages. They reported that car manufacturers did not produce 5,400 vehicles last week confirmed by Kia Motors which said it has begun suspending production at some plants. Today South Korea’s largest steel manufacturer, POSCO also said it was now beginning to suspend operations at some of plants for an undetermined period of time after last week’s warning of delays in shipments of some steel and semi-finished products. The government estimates that 450,000 tons of steel scheduled for deliveries last week failed to ship because of the strike.
So far, the government however says that the impact has been limited to South Korea’s domestic industries. Yet the ports continue to report a dramatic fall in their volumes leading to fears that the lack of shipments will quickly impact global industries. South Korea is a major semiconductor manufacturer. Experts fear the shocks could quickly spread across the global supply chain.
Industry officials said they believed some companies had stockpiled raw materials and supplies in the weeks leading up to the strike. A collation of 31 industry associations however joined with the government calling for an immediate end to the strike, Reuters is quoting a statement from the groups saying the unions were taking an extreme tactic by lengthening the strike “holding national logistics as a hostage.”
Strikers have now appeared at 14 different locations across the country the Transport Ministry said on Monday. The demonstrations remain peaceful with the police warning they would arrest strikers for illegal actions including any effort to block non-union drivers from continuing to work. The union said on Monday it planned to demonstrate at the Hyundai facilities in Ulsan as it calls for the government to take a more active role to ensure their wages and provide for enhanced work conditions.
The United Nations has launched a public crowdfunding drive that aims to raise $5 million towards an operation to avoid an oil spill from a decaying tanker stranded off the coast of Yemen, a U.N. official said on Monday.
The United Nations has secured some $60 million out of $80 million needed to initially offload the Safer tanker which holds 1.1 million barrels – four times as much oil as spilled during the 1989 Exxon Valdez tanker disaster in the United States.
“We are calling on the public to help us cross the finish line to get that first $80 million in place,” by the end of the month, David Gressly, U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, told a news briefing on the risk of an environmental disaster in the Red Sea.
He said that every dollar the public contributed would send a message to countries, companies and foundations that they “also need to act now before it’s too late”.
The campaign, which follows a similar multipronged approach to funding for aid to Ukraine, opens on Tuesday.
The U.N. plan is to transfer the oil to a safe temporary vessel and then arrange long-term replacement storage. The entire operation requires $144 million.
Saudi Arabia and the United States recently pledged $10 million each.
The Safer has been stranded off Ras Issa oil terminal without maintenance since 2015, when a Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen against the Houthi movement that ousted the internationally recognized government from the capital, Sanaa.
U.N. officials want the operation done by September when winter seas would increase the risk of a break up.
The U.S. Coast Guard and Japan Coast Guard completed a joint counter-narcotics exercise off Guam, June 7.
The exercise was the first operational exchange between U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam and the Japan Coast Guard and was designed to promote cooperation between the partners in areas of mutual interest including maritime security and counter-smuggling operations.
“What an incredible opportunity to conduct joint training with the Japan Coast Guard and be able to share law enforcement capabilities which will enhance future joint mission planning,” said Capt. Nicholas Simmons, Commander of Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam. “These exercises further solidify our great maritime relationship and will prove to be invaluable during future missions.”
The exercise was conducted between the crews of the Japan Coast Guard patrol vessel Mizuho, Japan Coast Guard International Criminal Investigation Division, U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Oliver Henry, and U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam.
On Monday, the participants met at Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam for tours of the participating vessels and tabletop discussions to bolster mutual understanding between the Coast Guards.
On Tuesday, the crews deployed for the at-sea exercise consisting of two counter-narcotics drills where the crews simulated locating and boarding a target of interest fishing vessel suspected of drug smuggling.
“Conducting exercises based off of real-world threats strengthens our combined readiness to respond more effectively,” said Lt. Jack Hamel, Commanding Officer of the Oliver Henry. “The cooperation and teamwork demonstrated today by the crews of Mizuho and Oliver Henry exemplifies our Coast Guards’ commitment to maintaining rules-based order in the Pacific.”
The drills focused on enhancing cooperation to detect, monitor, stop, and board suspected smuggling vessels and expanding interoperability between the partners.
The two crews also conducted a personnel exchange and rendered passing honors between the vessels.
The exercise was a part of the Japan Coast Guard and U.S. Coast Guard Operation SAPPHIRE 2022, which stands for Solid Alliance for Peace and Prosperity with Humanity and Integrity on the Rule-of-Law Based Engagement 2022, and was the second such exercise held between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Japan Coast Guard, the first being held in San Francisco in May.
SAPPHIRE was created during a joint document signing ceremony and celebration at Japan Coast Guard Headquarters earlier this year and was an annex to a memorandum of cooperation between the sea services which has existed since 2010.
The purpose of Operation SAPPHIRE is to standardize operating procedures for combined operations, training and capacity building, and information sharing between the partners.
The U.S. Coast Guard and Japan Coast Guard have been bolstering each other’s capabilities and effectiveness since the founding of the Japan Coast Guard in 1948. The agencies work together to counter illegal maritime activity and assist foreign maritime agencies in the Indo-Pacific region in improving their own capabilities necessary for maritime law enforcement.
Sri Lanka officials conducted a briefing to detail the scope of the environmental damage resulting from the fire and sinking of the containership X-Press Pearl last month. Government representatives and the shipping line continue to refute reports of additional pollution and possible oil leaks from the vessel, which remains partially submerged off Colombo. At the same time, additional international aid is being sent to help the country deal with what has been called the worst environmental disaster in the history of Sri Lanka.
Seeking to address reports that appeared in international media and on the Internet of oil leaking from the vessel, the government officials said divers have continued to inspect the hull and found no breaches in the bunker tanks. They suggested the light sheen and discoloration seen trailing from the vessel is not bunker fuel but possibly oil from the destroyed containers and other debris that fell into the ocean.
A team of international experts from the UK is assisting Sri Lanka and performing tests on the sheen seen drifting away from the vessel to determine its composition. According to the International Tanker Owners’ Pollution Federation, which has two representatives in Sri Lanka assisting, no oil pollution has been reported onshore.
After reviewing the manifests from the vessel’s cargo, they are now reporting that it was carrying 193 different items. In addition to the highlighted nitric acid, other chemicals including methanol and sodium hydroxide were among the contents of the containers. More than 800 of the containers were transporting either plastic or polythene, contributing to the reports of widespread plastic pollution in the ocean and washing up.
“The pollutants of particular concern are nurdles (a small plastic pellet used as a raw material in plastic manufacturing), as they have the potential to spread over vast distances, and recovery of these small plastic pellets can be difficult and protracted,” reported ITOPF. They estimate that the extent of the debris has already spread more than 80 miles along the coastline.
Beach cleaning efforts to clear nurdles (ITOPF)
Environmental officials said more than 50 containers of material have been recovered along the beaches. They estimated that each container holds more than 60 tons of debris. At the same time, Sri Lanka’s Central Environmental Authority has instructed the salvage company that the next step should be to recover containers that fell overboard to stop additional pollution.
“A large portion of the plastic that had washed ashore due to the sinking of the ship has now been collected,” Minister of Environment Mahinda Amaraweera said during the briefing. “We do not know how many more were eaten by fish in the ocean. According to the information I have, plastic pallets piled up on the beach have been collected and stored in containers for destruction,” he said.
More distrusting though are the growing reports of fish, turtles, and a dolphin washing up on shore having died after consuming the plastic pellets. As a result, a ban remains in effect for all fishing along the coastline in the affected region.
Seeking to provide immediate aid to the families whose livelihoods were impacted by the emergency, Chargé d’affaires Martin Kelly at the U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka announced $100,000 in immediate assistance. He said it would be distributed through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)’s implementing partners.
The Minister of Environment predicted that the damage to the environment will last for 20 years. “I say that the damage caused by the sinking of the X-Press Pearl cannot be measured in dollars. This caused a great deal of environmental damage and all those involved in this destruction should be legally punished.”
Sri Lanka is continuing to investigate the disaster, centering on when the chemical leak was discovered. Port and harbor officials contend that they were not properly notified by the ship and its agents. There have also been acquisitions that emails between the containership’s captain and the agent were deleted, causing the Sri Lanka police to order recovery of any missing emails. At the same time, they are continuing to review information from the vessel’s recovered VDR device.
USCG – Marine Safety Alert, The Office of Investigations and Casualty Analysis issued Marine Safety Alert 05-18, “Seeking What You Don’t Know May Reduce your Risks: Consider implementing an internal reporting system,” to remind owners and operators of all commercial vessels of the importance of developing and maintaining organizational-wide internal reporting systems.
The purpose of such a reporting system is to allow vessel employees at any level to anonymously report, when desired, issues related to vessel material safety, operational safety, and environmental compliance. The reporting systems must operate with a non-retaliation policy, which explains that the organization will not retaliate against any employee who, in good faith, reports a potential violation. Reporting policy should dictate that all company officials know that any attempt at retaliation against an employee who uses the reporting system or engages in any kind of whistleblowing would result in immediate disciplinary action. Without such a policy, employees and others will likely be hesitant to report potential problems internally. This non-retaliation policy is critical if your reporting system is to be effective.
Organizational reporting systems are managed internally or by a third party. They may use email, web based, telephone hotline and other reporting methods or combinations thereof to facilitate submission of reports from a vessel or fleet. Essential to the success of such systems is employee training on the hotline process; what happens after the complaint; retaliation and its handling; when to use the hotline; and types of issues to report. Senior vessel personnel and shore side managers have to be trained on handling reports raised directly to them and on the prohibition against retaliation.
Occasionally, such reporting systems fail and are underutilized. Reasons for why such system fail are associated with the following:
• Employee lack of awareness of the resource or how to contact it
• Fear of reprisal if they use it
• A lack of faith that something will be done with a report
• Fear due to lack of understanding of the hotline process
• Preference to use management as the resource for raising issues and asking questions
The Coast Guard strongly recommends that owners and operators consider the value of implementing reporting systems recognizing that such reporting can assist them in remaining compliant with various domestic and international requirements. Reporting will allow the owner and operator to become knowledgeable of issues related vessel material safety, operational safety and environmental concerns. This additional awareness allows management control and may reduce the impact of costs associated with repairs, environmental penalties, injuries and other circumstances before they become problematic to the owner and operator.
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