· 3 Die As Migrant Boat Capsizes Off Greece’s Crete
At least three people died after a boat carrying migrants capsized south of the Greek island of Crete, the ERT broadcaster reported, citing the coastguard.
ERT reported that 56 people have been rescued so far and the search for possible further passengers was ongoing.
The broadcaster published a video on Tuesday evening, taken by rescuers as they approached the completely overloaded vessel in the open sea.
The cries for help from the people can be heard, but the video stopped.
Shortly afterwards, the small boat capsized for reasons that were initially unclear.
Coastguard vessels, an air force helicopter and a boat from the EU border protection agency Frontex took part in the rescue operation.
Those rescued were to be taken to Crete first and given medical attention there.
They are said to have stated that they set sail from the Libyan port city of Tobruk.
· Container Vessel Collides with Recreational Vessel in English Bay, Canada
The container vessel Ever Sigma collided with a pleasure craft on 9th November as it was traversing English Bay in Canada. Although the pleasure craft began to take on water, both vessels were operational, and no injuries were reported in the incident.
The incident occurred at around 11:20 a.m. local time when the vessels were southeast of Lighthouse Park, West Vancouver, in English Bay. The pleasure craft had two people on board and suffered major structural damage, causing it to almost capsize and begin to take on water.
The Vancouver Police Department’s Marine unit responded, and a patrol boat was dispatched to the scene. The two people aboard the pleasure craft were rescued by the patrol boat, and the pleasure craft itself was dewatered and stabilized before being towed to Eagle Harbour for further assessment and subsequent repairs.
The Ever Sigma is a UK-flagged container ship that was built in 2005. The vessel has a length of 299.99 metres, a beam of 42.91 metres, and a gross tonnage of 76,185.
· Belize-Flagged Cargo Vessel Runs Aground in Batangas, No Pollution Reported
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported that the grounding of the deck cargo vessel Felicity 8 ran aground off Barangay Wawa Ibaba, Lemery, Batangas, Philippines, on 9th November amid the strong winds and currents caused by Super Typhoon Uwan.
The vessel had been sheltering at Pagapas Bay, Calatagan, when rough sea conditions caused it to drift toward shallow waters, leading to the grounding. In response to the emergency, the Lemery Coast Guard, along with the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) of Lemery, arrived at the site to assess the situation.
Upon inspection, no major structural damage was reported, and the vessel was found in stable condition. All crew members were reported to be safe, and no oil spill or marine pollution was observed in the affected area.
The PCG has instructed the vessel’s operator to arrange tugboat assistance for safe towing and continues to coordinate with the Local Government Unit of Lemery and other concerned agencies to ensure an orderly recovery operation and prevent any environmental risks.
Felicity 8 is a vessel sailing under the flag of Belize. It measures 97 meters in length and 19 meters in width.
· Ro-Ro Vessel “Finnwave” Suffers Engine Fire and Power Loss off UK Coast
The Ro-Ro cargo vessel Finnwave suffered an engine room fire and subsequent power loss approximately 12 miles off the coast of Eastbourne, UK, on 12th November. No injuries among Finnwave’s crew were reported.
The vessel issued a distress call at around 5:00 am local time, reporting an engine fire. Promptly, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI) Eastbourne station launched a rescue boat to assist amid moderate seas and force five winds.
According to the RNLI, the crew of Finnwave successfully extinguished the fire but were unable to restart the engines. The Eastbourne lifeboat remained on standby as the ship’s crew worked to deploy the vessel’s anchor, a process that took over an hour due to rough sea conditions.
After the vessel’s anchor was secured, HM Coastguard cleared the RNLI lifeboat to return to base. Authorities have not reported any pollution or further damage from the fire incident. An investigation is expected to follow to determine the cause of the incident.
