Uncategorized – Page 35 – Professional Mariner

28 Feb

Harsh treatment of Philippine crew held as witnesses in Calif. sparks calls for reform

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

The plight of a Philippine crew stranded in California has spotlighted an issue of growing concern to mariners: the harsh treatment of crews held as witnesses to crimes that may have been committed aboard their ships. On Sept. 10, 2004, the crew arrived in Long Beach, Calif., aboard the 600-foot Katerina with a load of steel. The crew aboard the…

28 Feb

Bay of Fundy shipping lanes shifted to protect right whales.

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

A major section of the traffic lanes was moved about four nautical miles to the east, effective July 1, 2003. The change was configured so that the new route comes no closer to Digby Neck, Nova Scotia, than the old route did. It marks the first time that the International Maritime Organization has altered a shipping route to protect marine…

28 Feb

Bold Endurance: From heavy lifting to deep-sea plowing

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

Under the blue hull paint, the Russian characters of her original name remain as a faint memory. Just above them the strong white lettering of her new name stands out â€" Bold Endurance. Image Credit: Alan Haig-Brown Built for the Russian navy by Hollming Ltd. of Finland in 1978, the 458-by-66-foot ship began life as a heavy-lift vessel. Purchased…

28 Feb

Seaspan orders eight ships that approach 10,000-TEU barrier

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

Now that Seaspan Container Lines Ltd. has placed orders for containerships capable of carrying almost 10,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units), the question arises, "Is there any size limit?" The main engine of one of Seaspan's 8,500-TEU ships under construction by Samsung Heavy Industries in South Korea. The MAN B&W 12-cylinder engine will generate 93,120 hp. Image Credit: Photos courtesy…

28 Feb

Inland waterways industry lobbying to protect trust funds

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

The inland waterways industry and its supporters in Congress have launched a campaign to stop what they consider to be a raid by the Bush Administration on two key trust funds. The administration is eyeing the Inland Waterways Trust Fund and the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, both of which have built up substantial unused balances. The administration has proposed a…

28 Feb

U.S. court says Coast Guard has the right to order master to abandon sinking ship

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

A ruling handed down from the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston has granted the U.S. Coast Guard the authority to force a master to abandon ship if, in the judgment of the Coast Guardsmen on scene, the vessel is in imminent peril. That's what happened aboard Northern Voyager, the 144-foot trawler at the center of the lawsuit…

28 Feb

Luther Blount, at 89, can still hit the right notes

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

At Blount Boats in Warren, R.I., owner and founder Capt. Luther H. Blount is surrounded by his history, hobbies and family. Walking to the windows of his modest house on the shipyard grounds, the 89-year-old Blount points out the dock where he learned to swim and the docks being rebuilt along the shipyard's wharf. His grandfather, Willis Blount, ran an…

28 Feb

Queen Mary 2: Built to keep alive the traditions of the great ocean liners

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

Inside the chaotic interior of Queen Mary 2, welding leads and electrical wires were jumbled on deck, while ceilings yet to be welded dripped from the morning's rain. Outside, a half-mile-long section of the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in St.-Nazaire, France, was full of massive sections of ships waiting to be joined like a giant Lego set. Halfway down the…

28 Feb

Construction to begin in Germany on large double-enders for BC Ferries

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

British Columbia Ferry Services expects to save about $80 million Canadian (about $66 million U.S.) by building its newest generation of double-ended ferries in Germany. In September 2004, BC Ferries awarded a fixed-price contract worth $325 million ($267 million U.S.) to Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft in Germany for three 22,100-gt vessels. Construction is due to begin in the fall of 2006. That…

28 Feb

Made to fit

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

My dad used to walk the boats all the way to Montreal," said Capt. Rob Wheeler. His father, retired Capt. George Wheeler, started as a deck hand on the old Lachine Canal and Great Lakes waterways right after World War II. As the little 250-by-43-foot lake boats moved through the locks, the deck hands acted as line handlers and walked…