Professional Mariner – February 2023

Two Puget Sound captain’s paths to the pilothouse

Capt. Darius Rogers steered Bo Brusco away from the Foss Maritime dock in Tacoma, Wa., and headed into Commencement Bay. Before long, TOTE’s cargo ship Midnight Sun rounded the peninsula at Browns Point. The 839-foot roll-on, roll-off (RO-RO) Midnight Sun and its sister ship North Star are familiar sights in the Puget Sound. Both make weekly round trips between Tacoma…

Fishing trawler sunk in collision with containership

Lack of a proper lookout and maintenance on critical equipment while underway led to the collision of a containership and fishing vessel, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. On October 28, 2022, while the 1,066-foot-long containership MSC Rita was transiting southbound in the Atlantic Ocean, the fishing vessel Tremont was transiting north-northeast in the same area. Tremont passed ahead of…

Challenges and solutions at the Panama Canal

Last summer, reacting to a severe drought that was dramatically reducing its water levels, the Panama Canal Authority (PCA) placed impactful restrictions on the number, and capacity, of vessels routed through the Canal’s locks. The resulting delays of up to three weeks for ships without reservations and record prices at auctions of last-minute slots compelled some shippers impose surcharges to…

Following in his father’s footsteps

MARINER PROFILE Capt. John DeCruz Ship Pilot/President Sandy Hook Pilots Association Capt. John DeCruz grew up watching oceangoing ships coming and going into New York Harbor from his hometown of Jersey City, N.J. Perhaps not surprisingly, he chose a career in the maritime industry, following a path blazed by his father and grandfather before him. DeCruz, 52, joined the Sandy Hook Pilots 25…

Defense bill funds maritime objectives, contains new regulations

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has long sought new rules to enhance safety on amphibious “duck tour” boats. The agency got its wish with passage of the year-end defense spending bill. The $857 billion National Defense Authorization Act requires the Coast Guard to begin rulemaking within six months on a host of new safety measures that arose during investigations…

Methanol fuel gives operators another option to cut emissions

As the shipping industry looks to reduce emissions, methanol is gaining a foothold as an alternative fuel source. Maersk has ordered 19 container vessels fitted to burn methanol. Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), which last year surpassed Maersk as the world’s largest shipping company, joined the Methanol Institute, the trade association for the methanol industry, signaling an interest in the fuel…

Great Lakes pilotage groups defend proposed rate increases

The U.S. Coast Guard has proposed a 5.78 percent increase for Great Lakes pilotage rates for the 2023 shipping season. The new hourly rate structure would raise shipping costs by about $4.5 million over the 2022 season, or about 14 percent, according to the Coast Guard. Shipping industry representatives expressed concern over the steady rise in rates over the past…

Centuries-old maritime nonprofit is looking for retired mariners to help

For 20 years, Roger Flaherty worked in the galley on Great Lakes freighters as a member of the Seafarers International Union. It was a career he enjoyed with a union that treated him fairly. Now 77, he stopped working about 15 years ago after suffering a stroke and heart attack. It was earlier than he expected, leaving him with a…

AmNav’s ‘magic carpets’ cover all bases in the Bay Area

AmNav Maritime Capt. Dan Thinger arrived at the Port of Richmond in San Francisco Bay and idled the tugboat Z-Three against the starboard quarter of the tanker Trinity. Two Crowley tugs, Valor and Apollo, were already in position off the starboard stern and starboard bow, respectively, waiting for the ship to get underway. As the two other tugs stretched their…

Pilot’s cellphone use scrutinized in Ever Forward grounding

The pilot conning the containership Ever Forward was distracted by his cellphone before missing a crucial turn that caused the vessel to leave the channel and run aground in Chesapeake Bay, according to federal investigators. The pilot, a senior member of the Association of Maryland Pilots, drafted an email and sent two text messages on his phone in the minutes…