02 May

NTSB calls for built-in firefighting systems for older ferries

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News, Maritime News
An investigation of the fire on a Boston commuter ferry in June 2006 has prompted the National Transportation Safety Board to recommend that all such vessels have fire-detection and fixed fire-suppression systems in their engine rooms. The blaze in the engine room of the ferry Massachusetts resulted in no injuries but caused $800,000 in damage, the NTSB said in a…
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02 May

Stern-wheel cruise ship hits rock in Alaska, forcing evacuation of 248 passengers

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News
The Coast Guard Cutter Liberty sits alongside Empress of the North as it takes on passengers from the stricken cruise vessel. (U.S. Coast Guard) Empress of the North, a 360-foot riverboat-style cruise ship, ran aground after striking an island about 49 miles west of Juneau, Alaska, on May 14. After striking Rocky Island, a small outcrop in Icy Strait, the…
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02 May

Worker killed when construction barge capsizes in N.J. river

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News
A demolition worker was killed when a custom-engineered segmented barge capsized in New Jersey’s Manasquan River after its load became imbalanced, the Coast Guard said. A 25-foot tugboat also overturned in the April 18 accident, which occurred at 1546 while a crew was demolishing the old Route 70 bridge near Point Pleasant, N.J. To catch discarded rubble underneath the bridge,…
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