brownwater – Page 4 – Professional Mariner

06 Sep

MobileOps, TVIB unveil integration to smooth audit compliance

Professional Mariner StaffIndustry Newsbrownwater, Licensing and training, Tugboats and towing

(BELLEVUE, Wash.) — MobileOps, a leading provider of maritime operations software solutions, has unveiled its latest integration with the Towing Vessel Inspection Bureau (TVIB), a Coast Guard-approved third-party organization for Subchapter M compliance. This integration is streamlining compliance management processes and significantly enhancing operational efficiency for maritime businesses. The request to integrate the two systems originated from a customer and…

31 Aug

Towing safety report shows second-lowest crew fatality rate

Professional Mariner StaffTugboats & Towingbrownwater, safety, U.S. Coast Guard

(ARLINGTON, Va.) — For almost 30 years, the Coast Guard-AWO Safety Partnership’s National Quality Steering Committee has been tracking overall trends in towing industry safety and environmental protection, which it conveys in an annual report. This year’s report, compiled by the Coast Guard Office of Investigations and Casualty Analysis, included the following notable findings: • The 2022 crewmember fatality rate…

30 Aug

Greater Houston Port Bureau honors Kirby’s David Grzebinski

Professional Mariner StaffIndustry Newsbrownwater, Ports, Tugboats and towing

(HOUSTON) — The Greater Houston Port Bureau honored David Grzebinski, president and CEO of Kirby Corp., as the 2023 Maritime Leader of the Year at the bureau’s Annual Maritime Dinner on Aug. 26. He was named as the 2023 honoree for his steadfast commitment to improving the Greater Houston port region. The evening of celebration included recognition from industry leaders…

21 Aug

MarAd adds ‘highway’ in Alaska, extends Ohio River system

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime Newsbrownwater, Ports, shipping

(JUNEAU, Alaska) — While in Alaska last week, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced the designation of two new marine highway routes as part of the United States Marine Highway Program (MHP). The newly designated M-11 and the M-79 routes will help speed the movement of goods, strengthen supply chains, and support local economies in Alaska, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.…

07 Aug

Crescent adding Tier 4 tug for Mississippi River operations

Rich MillerTugboats & Towingbrownwater, shipbuilding

(MOBILE, Ala.) — Crescent Towing has begun construction of a new 6,000-hp, Tier 4 z-drive tugboat at Blakeley BoatWorks in Mobile, Ala., to be immediately added to its Mississippi River ship-assist operations upon completion. “The addition of this new 6,000-hp z-drive in support of our Mississippi River operations highlights our continued commitment to providing our customers with the most powerful…

31 Jul

NTSB cites excessive speed in collision between tug, boxship

Rich MillerCasualty Newsbrownwater, NTSB, Tugboats and towing, U.S. Coast Guard

(WASHINGTON) — Excessive speed during an advanced harbor-assist maneuver led to a tugboat colliding with a containership in the Houston Ship Channel last year, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Wednesday. The tugboat George M and containership MSC Aquarius collided on April 14, 2022, while the tugboat was positioning for a ship-assist maneuver and the containership was transiting north…

18 Jul

Partially sunken towboat spills fuel into Tennessee River

Rich MillerCasualty Newsbrownwater, Tugboats and towing

(NEW ORLEANS) — The U.S. Coast Guard and partner agencies responded Sunday to a discharge of diesel fuel from a partially sunken towboat near Florence, Ala. Coast Guard Sector Ohio Valley received notification at approximately 2 p.m. from RMB Marine Services reporting that the towboat Michael R had partially sunk at its berth in the Port of Florence, adjacent to…

17 Jul

Low water again threatening Midwest barge traffic

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime Newsbrownwater, shipping, Towboats and towing

(CAIRO, Ill.) — Water levels on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers are falling for a second straight year, raising the prospect of shipping problems along U.S. freight routes, Bloomberg reported. In Cairo, Ill., where the Ohio joins the Mississippi, water levels have dropped more than 6 feet (1.8 meters) in the past week and are forecast to fall more than…

11 Jul

New AWO video touts industry as leader in sustainability

Rich MillerTugboats & Towingbrownwater, shipping

(ARLINGTON, Va.) — The American Waterways Operators (AWO) has produced a new video highlighting the tugboat, towboat and barge industry's sustainability leadership and its commitment to protecting the environment. The two-minute video, "The Tugboat, Towboat and Barge Industry: A Sustainability Leader Today, and Tomorrow," explains that the industry is the greenest mode of freight transportation today. Just one dry cargo…

05 Jul

Towboat crew rescues five after pleasure boat hits barge

Rich MillerMaritime Newsbrownwater, Tugboats and towing, U.S. Coast Guard

(HOUSTON) — The U.S. Coast Guard and good Samaritans rescued five adults who were injured in a boat collision near Galveston, Texas, on Tuesday. Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston command center watch standers received a call at 9:41 p.m. on VHF-FM Channel 16 from the captain of the towing vessel Richard Tolar that an 18-foot pleasure craft had collided with a…