Safety alert: Properly configuring DSC-equipped radios
02 Mar

Safety alert: Properly configuring DSC-equipped radios

Rich MillerMaritime News,
(WASHINGTON) — This safety alert is to remind mariners of the importance and value of properly configuring their very high frequency (VHF) radios equipped with digital selective calling (DSC) to enable proper function during an emergency. When properly installed, DSC allows the mariner to simply hit the red DSC button in an emergency, resulting in the vessel’s geographic coordinates and…
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AWO honors heroism of tug and towboat crews with new award
01 Mar

AWO honors heroism of tug and towboat crews with new award

Rich MillerTugboats & Towing,
(HOUSTON) — At its Winter Safety Meeting on Wednesday, the American Waterways Operators (AWO) announced the inaugural recipients of the new American Waterways Honor & Excellence in Rescue Operations (HERO) Award. The award documents and recognizes rescues undertaken by AWO member company employees who demonstrate selflessness, skill and bravery. Qualifying events for the award include, among others: rescuing commercial or…
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Safety alert: Dangerous gateway handhold arrangements
09 Feb

Safety alert: Dangerous gateway handhold arrangements

Rich MillerMaritime News, ,
(WASHINGTON) — This U.S. Coast Guard safety alert addresses the importance of verifying the correct arrangement of handholds in embarkation gate arrangements aboard merchant vessels. The Coast Guard is currently investigating a casualty involving a fall from a pilot ladder where the handholds in the gate arrangement aboard the vessel terminated without being rigidly secured to the vessel’s structure. This…
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Crowley vessels, crews honored for environmental achievement
30 Nov

Crowley vessels, crews honored for environmental achievement

Rich MillerIndustry News,
(JACKSONVILLE, Fla.) ­– Sixty-one Crowley vessels and their crews were recently honored by the Chamber of Shipping of America (CSA) for a cumulative 602 years of safe environmental achievement and operations. The annual Environmental Achievement Awards are given to vessels that have no reportable spills, U.S. Coast Guard citations or other pollution incidents. Aligned with its current sustainability strategy, Crowley…
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NOAA’s Backyard Buoys to improve ocean data access
27 Oct

NOAA’s Backyard Buoys to improve ocean data access

Rich MillerMaritime News,
(WASHINGTON) — A new ocean science effort to improve equity and inclusion is underway, thanks to a $4.98 million cooperative agreement involving three regional associations of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System, which is led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The National Science Foundation (NSF) provided the funds through a cooperative agreement for Backyard Buoys, a project…
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Tour boat holed, takes on water in Thousand Islands grounding
01 Dec

Tour boat holed, takes on water in Thousand Islands grounding

Professional Mariner StaffCasualty News, ,
Island Queen III was on a cruise in the Thousand Islands area of the St. Lawrence River when it made contact with the bottom, causing enough damage to flood the vessel’s steering compartment. No injuries were reported, but an investigation revealed safety deficiencies involving life jackets and evacuation procedures. Not long after departing Kingston, Ontario at 1237 on Aug. 8,…
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11 Sep

Shipbuilding News, September 2020

Professional Mariner StaffIndustry News, Maritime News, Shipbuilding, , , , , ,
Shipbuilders council announces 2020 safety awards  The Shipbuilders Council of America (SCA) has recognized more than a dozen U.S. shipyards for safety efforts during the past year. The awards are available to member shipyards that submit injury and illness surveys, have zero fatalities over the course of the year, demonstrate fewer recordable safety incidents than the SCA average, or reduce…
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