Messages

766

Shipping News and information / Re: Stolt Innovation in problems in Rotterdam harbour (Update)

« on: April 24, 2008, 12:20:47 PM »

Situation at this moment 24 april is stable. Temperature is below 50 degrees celsius. Tomorrow experts will check again and most probably she will be allowed to enter port again to finish unloading.
Hav fun
Fred

767

Shipping News and information / Re: Stolt Innovation in problems in Rotterdam harbour (Update)

« on: April 23, 2008, 12:16:37 PM »

2nd update: The ship has been towed to sea and is now parked 6 km from the shore.

768

Shipping News and information / Re: Stolt Innovation in problems in Rotterdam harbour (Update)

« on: April 23, 2008, 11:07:04 AM »

Hi Tomas, I will. However iff the situation stays as it is, the tanks will be stabelized within a few days. But iff it changes i'll keep you informed. I mailed Hanse, maybe he can come close enough to make some photos.
Fred

769

Shipping News and information / Stolt Innovation in problems in Rotterdam harbour (Update)

« on: April 23, 2008, 07:58:21 AM »

Pressure and temperature in Stolt Innovation went up since tuesday evening.
The Stolt Innovation was berthed in the 3rd Petroleumhaven and has been towed to a safer place in the Calandcanal. She was carrying MDI
(methyleendifenyldiisocyanaat) that gives a reaction with water. At this moment they try to get the pressure back to normal by using a nutralizing substance.
methyleendifenyldiisocyanaat is used for the production of PUR foam.
Older photo: http://www.shipspotting.com/modules/myalbum/photo.php?lid=589587
Regards
Fred
Update: according to a spokesman from the Rotterdam firebrigade the situation is not too bad. It can take some days before the situation is back to normal.

770

Shipping News and information / Re: 3 Queens meet Expecting to see some nice photos

« on: April 22, 2008, 06:11:50 PM »

Too bad ;-)
Lets hope another member was there today.
Have fun
Fred

771

Shipping News and information / Re: Four armed pirates attacked a Basque Tuna fish while it was fishing off the coast of Somalia

« on: April 22, 2008, 11:21:34 AM »

Pirates who seized a Spanish fishing boat  off Somalia have taken the 26 crew members off the vessel onto dry land, the  wife of the captain told Spanish radio Tuesday.
The captain, Amadeo Alvarez, told his wife by telephone that the pirates  had ordered the 13 Spaniards and 13 Africans to disembark.
The crew "are a little more calm," his wife told Spanish National Radio. "I  spoke to my husband and they are well, they are being well treated."
She said they had "arrived on land," but did not indicate where.
A government spokesman would not confirm the information.
The father of one of the hostages also told Radio Euskadi that were 10  pirates and they are "soldiers."
Pirates armed with grenade launchers seized the tuna boat, the Playa de  Bakio, on Sunday, and have demanded a ransom to release the crew.
Spain said Monday it has appealed to France, the United States and NATO for  help in ending the crisis.
A Spanish military frigate on Monday left the Red Sea to begin searching  for the fishing boat off east Africa.
Defence Minister Carme Chacon Tuesday canceled all her impending  appointments in order to concentrate on the crisis.
The coastal waters off Somalia, which has not had an effective central  government for more than 17 years and is plagued by insecurity, are considered  to be among the most dangerous waterways for shipping in the world.
Last year more than 25 ships were seized by pirates in Somali coastal  waters despite US navy patrols.
The International Maritime Bureau advises merchant ships to stay at least  200 nautical miles from the Somali coast.
The seizure came two days after a Paris court charged six Somalis with  taking the crew of a French luxury yacht hostage earlier this month.
The six were captured by French special forces, along with 200,000 dollars  (125,000 euros) of suspected ransom money, after they released the 30-strong  crew of the yacht on April 11. They had held the group hostage for a week.

772

Shipping News and information / 3 Queens meet Expecting to see some nice photos

« on: April 22, 2008, 08:33:04 AM »

Three British liners known as  Cunard's 'Queens' were to meet in an historic first in their home port of  Southampton on Tuesday, the company said.
   The 148,000-tonne Queen Mary 2, the biggest cruise ship in the world when  it was built, and Cunard's newest 'Queen', Queen Victoria, will salute the  venerable QE2 on the day she celebrates the 39th anniversary of her official  entry into service.
   Thousands of people are expected to line Southampton's docks in southeast  England to see the three ships as they sound their whistles together shortly  after 1600 GMT before Queen Mary 2 embarks on her first transatlantic crossing  of the year.
   The 17-storey Queen Mary 2 entered service in January 2004 with a maiden  voyage from Southampton to Florida.
   Its construction was marked by tragedy when a walkway collapsed in the  French port of Saint Nazaire, killing 16 people.
   It was overtaken in 2006 as the world's largest cruise ship in terms of  volume by the Finnish-built Freedom of the Seas, which can carry up to 4,400  passengers to the Queen Mary's 2,620.
   The QE2 went into service in April 1969. She is to undergo a refit later  this year.

773

Shipping News and information / Crew Cargovessel Al-Khaleech free

« on: April 22, 2008, 08:08:40 AM »

Somali regional forces on Tuesday rescued  a hijacked cargo vessel and arrested seven pirates after a clash in the Gulf of  Aden, an official said.
   Three pirates and a soldier from the semi-autonomous Puntland region were  wounded in the incident, a day after the Al-Khaleech was hijacked as it sailed  from United Arab Emirates to the Puntland port town of Bosasso.
   "We are very pleased that our forces secured the boat and its crew," said  Puntland Seaports Minister Abdisamed Yusuf Abwan, who added that none of the  more than 10 crew on the cargo ship were wounded.
   The UAE-owned vessel, contracted by a Somali trader to transport  merchandise, was seized on Monday about 100 nautical miles from Basasso, said  Bile Mohamoud Qabowsade, an advisor for the Puntland president.
   Somalia has had no effective central government for more than 17 years, and  its waters are considered to be among the most dangerous for shipping in the  world.
   On Monday, pirates holding 26 crew members on a Spanish fishing boat off  the Somali coast meanwhile demanded a ransom for their release, a day after  storming the vessel armed with grenade launchers.
   A Spanish naval frigate was heading from the Red Sea to the area of the  seizure off east Africa, according to a government source.
   Also on Monday, a Japanese oil tanker was damaged and then chased by  heavily armed pirates off the coasts of Somalia and Yemen, officials and crew  members said. No one was hurt.
   Six Somalis have meanwhile been charged by a court in the French capital  Paris for taking the crew of a French luxury yacht hostage for a week off  Somalia earlier this month.
   French special forces captured the accused, and seized 200,000 dollars  (125,000 euros) of suspected ransom money, after freeing the yacht's crew of 30  on April 11.
   Last year more than 25 ships were seized by pirates in Somali coastal  waters, despite US navy patrols. The International Maritime Bureau advises  merchant ships to stay at least 200 nautical miles from the Somali coast.

774

Shipping News and information / Re: and another hijack attempt UPDATE

« on: April 21, 2008, 11:06:57 AM »

A major Japanese oil tanker was damaged and  then chased by heavily armed pirates off the coasts of Somalia and Yemen on  Monday but no one was injured, officials and crew members said.
   It came a day after a Spanish tuna fishing boat carrying a crew of 26 was  seized by pirates in waters off Somalia, which has not had an effective central  government for more than 17 years.
   The area is plagued by insecurity and considered to be among the most  dangerous waterways for shipping in the world.
   The 150,000-tonne tanker Takayama, with a crew of 23, sustained damage but  was able to sail on its own power after the attack at about 4:40 am local time  (0140 GMT), its owner and operator Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line) said here.
   "We heard one big boom at first and then we were chased by the group for  about an hour," a crew member told Japanese public broadcaster NHK. "We were  attacked on the left and the right sides of the ship at least four times."
   The attack occurred in international waters some 440 kilometres (275 miles)  east of the Yemeni port of Aden, Japanese officials said.
   "We have received information that the tanker was attacked by a small  pirate ship with weapons like rocket launchers," chief Japanese government  spokesman Nobutaka Machimura told reporters.
   Nippon Yusen said one unidentified boat was involved in the attack, while a  Japan Coast Guard official said the number of vessels operated by the pirates  had yet to be confirmed.
   The tanker's crew included 16 Filipinos and seven Japanese, the shipping  company said in a statement.
   Noel Choong, head of the Malaysia-based International Maritime Bureau's  Piracy Reporting Centre, told that "pirates on five speed boats" attacked  the tanker.
   Choong said the pirates could have used rocket-propelled grenades and  machine gun fire. "But the tanker increased speed and managed to prevent the  pirates from boarding and taking control of the oil tanker."
   The tanker was on its way to the Saudi port of Yanbu in the Red Sea after  unloading oil at the South Korean port of Ulsan when the attack happened, the  company statement said.
   A Yemeni maritime source told the tanker diverted to Aden for repairs  caused during the incident.
   Choong said there had been nine attacks in the Gulf of Aden since  February.
   The International Maritime Bureau has urged ships plying the gulf to  maintain strict 24-hour anti-piracy vigilance against small suspicious boats  coming towards them.
   In early April, a luxury French cruise yacht with around 30 crew was  hijacked off the coast of Somalia.
   The hostages were released when a ransom, believed to be around two million  dollars (1.3 million euros), was paid.

775

Shipping News and information / Re: VLCC Takayama attacked by rocket

« on: April 21, 2008, 11:04:51 AM »

A major Japanese oil tanker was damaged and  then chased by heavily armed pirates off the coasts of Somalia and Yemen on  Monday but no one was injured, officials and crew members said.
   It came a day after a Spanish tuna fishing boat carrying a crew of 26 was  seized by pirates in waters off Somalia, which has not had an effective central  government for more than 17 years.
   The area is plagued by insecurity and considered to be among the most  dangerous waterways for shipping in the world.
   The 150,000-tonne tanker Takayama, with a crew of 23, sustained damage but  was able to sail on its own power after the attack at about 4:40 am local time  (0140 GMT), its owner and operator Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line) said here.
   "We heard one big boom at first and then we were chased by the group for  about an hour," a crew member told Japanese public broadcaster NHK. "We were  attacked on the left and the right sides of the ship at least four times."
   The attack occurred in international waters some 440 kilometres (275 miles)  east of the Yemeni port of Aden, Japanese officials said.
   "We have received information that the tanker was attacked by a small  pirate ship with weapons like rocket launchers," chief Japanese government  spokesman Nobutaka Machimura told reporters.
   Nippon Yusen said one unidentified boat was involved in the attack, while a  Japan Coast Guard official said the number of vessels operated by the pirates  had yet to be confirmed.
   The tanker's crew included 16 Filipinos and seven Japanese, the shipping  company said in a statement.
   Noel Choong, head of the Malaysia-based International Maritime Bureau's  Piracy Reporting Centre, told that "pirates on five speed boats" attacked  the tanker.
   Choong said the pirates  could have used rocket-propelled grenades and  machine gun fire. "But the tanker increased speed and managed to prevent the  pirates from boarding and taking control of the oil tanker."
   The tanker was on its way to the Saudi port of Yanbu in the Red Sea after  unloading oil at the South Korean port of Ulsan when the attack happened, the  company statement said.
   A Yemeni maritime source told the tanker diverted to Aden for repairs  caused during the incident.
   Choong said there had been nine attacks in the Gulf of Aden since  February.
   The International Maritime Bureau has urged ships plying the gulf to  maintain strict 24-hour anti-piracy vigilance against small suspicious boats  coming towards them.
   In early April, a luxury French cruise yacht with around 30 crew was  hijacked off the coast of Somalia.
   The hostages were released when a ransom, believed to be around two million  dollars (1.3 million euros), was paid.

776

Shipping News and information / Re: Four armed pirates attacked a Basque Tuna fish while it was fishing off the coast of Somalia

« on: April 21, 2008, 09:58:35 AM »

One person has been reported being wounded
Fred

777

Shipping News and information / and another hijack attempt

« on: April 21, 2008, 07:51:47 AM »

21  April, 2008 - A large Japanese oil tanker was fired on by  an unidentified small boat off Yemen on Monday but no one was injured in the  attack, its owner and operator said.
   The 150,000-tonne Takayama,http://www.shipspotting.com/modules/myalbum/photo.php?lid=454220 , with a crew of 23, sustained damage but was  able to sail on its own power after the attack at about 4:40 am local time  (0140 GMT), Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line) said.
   The extent of damage was not immediately known. Kyodo News said the ship  was hit by a rocket.
   The boat left the area, some 440 kilometres (275 miles) off Aden, 23  minutes after the attack, the company said in a statement.
   The tanker was on its way to the Saudi port of Yanbu in the Red Sea after  unloading oil at the South Korean port of Ulsan, the statement said.
   The crew included 16 Filipinos and seven Japanese, the company said.
   Waters near Somalia, which has not had an effective central government for  more than 17 years and is plagued by insecurity, are considered to be among the  most hazardous in the world.

778

Shipping News and information / Re: Drogheda Port pictorial

« on: April 18, 2008, 05:08:37 PM »

What about a little resizing? You have managed to upload photos before.
Have fun
Fred

779

Shipping News and information / Re: Containership newbuildings > 4.000 TEU - deliveries March 2008

« on: April 18, 2008, 03:02:12 PM »

Thank you for posting, I'll watch for them ;-)
Fred

780

Shipping News and information / Aegean Angel rescues 11 from S Korean Tale II

« on: April 17, 2008, 01:05:32 PM »

A Greek oil tanker on Wednesday night  rescued 11 sailors on board a South Korean cargo ship that sank off the coast  of Venezuela, the Greek merchant marine ministry said Thursday.
   The crew of the Tale II, 10 Guyanese and a Cuban, are in good health and  will be dropped off in Jamaica on Friday, the ministry said in a statement.
   The Greek tanker, the Aegean Angel, was en route to Galveston, Texas from  Nigeria but responded to the South Korean ship's distress signal after an alert  by the United States coastguard.