A NewsLink service for Dole Chile

Thursday, November 6, 2014

SAFETY
NTSB ISSUES NEW GUIDELINES FOR
SAFE ABANDONING OF SHIP
NTSB issues new guidelines for safe
abandoning of ship The US National
Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has
issued new guidelines for improving the
chances of survival when abandoning ship.
The new guidelines emphasise that good
preparation and proper use of safety
equipment is the key to survival.
What can mariners do?
Develop and execute a thorough
weather preparedness plan. Ensure that
your plan takes into account surface low
pressure systems, nontropical storms, and
other weather systems that may form rapidly
and locally.
Ensure you know how to use safety
equipment. Don't wait until a real emergency
to find out whether you know how to properly
use lifesaving equipment. Instead, include in
your regular weekly or monthly drills a
thorough step-by-step assessment of all such
equipment, especially liferafts, which can't
actually be deployed during drills.
Plan before evacuating. Before an
emergency, ensure you know your assigned
duties and responsibilities?such as who's
bringing what supplies?and ensure the
responsible person is aware of the location of
those items.
Drill as if it is a real emergency.
Conducting realistic drills gets the attention of
crewmembers, builds their confidence and
proficiency in emergency response
procedures, and reinforces a strong safety
culture. Review drill performance with crew to
identify areas for improvement.
Even in coastal waters, plan for the
worst. Despite being close to shore and/or in
a normally high-traffic waterway, don't assume
that others will be able to come to your
immediate aid, especially if your location
changes. Be physically and mentally prepared
for the possibility of a prolonged exposure
situation.
Follow your plan. In emergency
situations involving high stress and
exhaustion, ensure all aspects are covered by
running through step-by-step emergency
procedures in accordance with established
checklists. Use shoreside support resources
to assist you with this.
Don't forget the EPIRB. The EPIRB is
a vital piece of equipment that can significantly
shorten the time necessary to locate and
rescue you. Take it with you! In addition, carry
a personal locator beacon (PLB); it is an
inexpensive and effective device.
Stay together in the water. Search
and rescue personnel will more easily spot a
group of people in the water than dispersed
swimmers. Source: NSTB

Twelve Somalis acquitted

of piracy in Mauritius
Twelve Somali men tried for piracy were
acquitted on Thursday in Mauritius for lack of
evidence, court officials in Saint Louise said.
"The prosecution did not provide enough
evidence to prove the guilt of the accused,"
magistrate Wendy Rangan said, ending a
year-long trial that began in October 2013.
The 12 men, aged between 20 and 45, were
accused of attacking the Panamanian-flagged
container ship MSC Jasmine in the Indian
Ocean in January 2013, before being captured
by European naval forces and transferred to
Mauritius for trial.
Pirate attacks off Somalia have been slashed in
recent years, with international fleets patrolling

the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, as well as

armed guards being posted aboard many vessels.
Foreign navies who capture suspected pirates
have handed over hundreds to regional nations
including Mauritius, as well as to Kenya,
Seychelles and Tanzania.
Although Mauritius has not been directly
affected by Somali piracy, the Indian Ocean
island nation has feared for its maritime trade as
well as the many luxury cruises that feed its
economy.
At their peak in January 2011, Somali pirates
held 736 hostages and 32 boats, some onshore
and others on their vessels. Today, pirates hold
at least 30 hostages but no major ships. (AFP)

European shipowners launch

sulphur survey

Dunkerque port issues CEI to

setup LNG bunkering

The European
Community Shipowners'
Association (ECSA) said that European
shipowners have launched a survey to monitor
the economic impact of the 0.1% sulphur
requirements for shipping in the European
Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs).
The new requirements are due to enter into
force on January 1, 2015, as per the amended
2012 EU Sulphur Directive.
In a press statement, ECSA Secretary General
Patrick Verhoeven noted that many reports have
already been published on the implementation of
the new sulphur rules and the ensuing risks of a
modal backshift (from sea to land-based
transport), but have, so far, primarily been based
on forecasts.
The survey is part of a stepwise approach to
ascertain the economic impact of the upcoming
sulphur requirements by gathering factual
information from ship operators active in the
European SECAs (the North Sea, Baltic Sea and
the Channel).
ECSA strongly encourages ship operators
active in the SECAs to answer the survey, which
will be running until November 30. This survey
aims to gather real-time information about the
economic impact of the low sulphur limits for
marine fuels that will become effective from 1
January 2015 in the European SOx Emission
Control Area (SECA), which comprises the
Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the English
Channel.

Dunkerque Port has issued a Call for

Expressions of Interest (CEI) for setting up of a
marine bunkering and on-land supply chain of
small-scale LNG, from the port of Dunkirk, in
April.
Following an European directive for a drastic
reduction in sulphur emissions from ships,
mainly in the Channel and North Sea area, the
CEI served initially to identify the operators
interested in this activity and the selected
candidates were then asked to structure and
submit a project file in September 2014.
Certain bids were eliminated during the
preliminary analysis and a detailed analysis of
the project files is in progress with the
Dunkerque LNG - Air Liquide - Exmar
consortium, a press release said.
Exmar will handle the preliminary studies.
During the first phase, it is proposed that the
loading arms and the main wharf of the LNG
terminal, currently under construction, be
adapted to rapidly allow the supply of LNG to
ships with capacities of up to 2,000 m3.
In a second phase, the consortium proposes to
create a marine station specifically dedicated to
bunkering, which could accommodate ships with
capacities of between 2,000 and 20,000 m3.
Gaz-Opale will operate the marine station.

PAGE 2 - Thursday, November 6, 2014

SHIPPING DATA

BALTIC EXCHANGE
Market snapshot: 1100 GMT
Dry Index
BDI
1464
Capesize Index
BCI
3702
Panamax Index
BPI
1224
Supramax Index
BSI
888
Handysize Index
BHSI
457

-20
-79
-14
0
-1

EXCHANGE RATES
New York (Wed Cls)
Fgn Currency
in USD
Britain (Pound)
1.5977
Canada (Dollar)
0.8772
China (Yuan)
0.1636
Euro
1.2478
India (Rupee)
0.0163
Indonesia (Rupiah) 0.000082
Japan (Yen)
0.008718
Norway (Krone)
0.1463
Philippines (Peso)
0.0222
Poland (Zloty)
0.2950
Russia (Ruble)
0.0223
Singapore (Dollar)
0.7729
Ukraine (Hryvnia)
0.0741

USD in Fgn
Currency
0.6259
1.1400
6.1140
0.8014
61.4150
12168.00
114.7100
6.8340
45.0900
3.3900
44.9341
1.2938
13.5000

GMS invites shipping regulators

to India to see improvements in
ship recycling
Global Marketing Systems, Inc (GMS), the
world's largest cash buyer of ships for recycling,
has challenged the European Commission's
intention to ban ship recycling by beaching, by
inviting the Commission and a major
representative group of top level shipping
industry stakeholders to India to witness the
recycling process first hand at one of the
country's best yards.
Addressing a high-level industry conference in
London, Dr Nikos Mikelis, non-executive
Director of GMS, said ship recycling yards were
improving in South East Asia and the best way
to see this was to visit the yards in person.
GMS also used the conference to call on
Panama and the Marshall Islands to accede to
the Hong Kong Convention for the Safe and
Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships in
order to satisfy calls by the International
Chamber of Shipping and the European
Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA)
for a level playing field in global recycling.
Ratification by these two large flags would
speed up entry into force of the Convention.
GMS said it would be willing to invite
officials from EU Member States; experts on
hazardous materials; representatives of ship
owners or ship owner associations; the IMO
Secretariat and the European Commission to see
the improvements that have taken place in
Indian recycling yards. The observers would
then be requested to compile a report of their
findings.
Dr Mikelis said that while progress was being
made in Indian yards, it could "come to an
abrupt end through the ill-advised efforts to ban
ship recycling by beaching through the Unit of
Waste Management of the European
Commission's Directorate-General for the
Environment." (Elaborate Communications)

Innovative 'sand solution' to

strengthen weak links along
Dutch coast
The Netherlands, a country with only half of its
land exceeding one metre above sea level, will
strengthen weak links along the northwestern
coastal area by 2016 with an innovative "sand
solution".
The solution envisions both defence against
the impact of super storms and creation of more
space for nature and recreation, according to
Dutch officials.
Most of the 10 weak links where waves are
particularly powerful have already been
reinforced and the work on the remaining
locations is in full swing, Roeland Hillen, an
official of the Low Country's water authorities,
said on Tuesday at a construction sitealong the
Hondsbossche and Pettermer Seawall in the
province of North Holland.
"By the beginning of 2016, all the weak links
will have been strengthened and the Dutch coast
will be protected against flooding for the next 50
years," said Hillen, MD of Flood Protection
Programme, part of the Rijkswaterstaat, a
mission that manages the Netherlands' main
highway and waterway network.
Along the centuries-old sea wall, a stretch of
12m high dune is being erected with a particular
type of sand extracted from the sea. Between the
dike and the newly created dune, space is left for
a small valley. (Xinhua)

Extended waiting times expected

at Kiel Canal
The Kiel Canal Authorities have announced that
the scheduled maintenance works at Brunsbuttel
locks may extend the waiting times of transiting
ships in upcoming weeks.
The Big Southern Lock remained closed on
Thursday because of diving and drilling work
that started on November 4. The Big Northern
Lock will be closed during daytime from
November 10-14 to enable diving inspections.
Issuing a press release, container feeder
operator Team Lines did not rule out the
possibility of complete closure, if necessary.

Enclosed space entry training

In January 2015 enclosed space entry drills and
training every two months will become
mandatory under amendments to SOLAS. Too
many lives have already been lost because
proper safety procedures were either not in place
or not enforced. Not taking seriously the danger
of enclosed space entry can be fatal.
Read the latest MARS report titled Enclosed
spaces claim another victim to see how
quickly ignoring common-sense procedures and
checks can kill. You are encouraged to access
(and contribute to) the Institute's free online
MARS
database
(Visit
www.nautinst.org/MARSfor online database).
Follow the discussion on the Institute's LinkedIn
Group.

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WORLD TRAVEL
WORLD'S MOST BIZARRE TOURIST
ATTRACTIONS
From the strange to the creepy to the
gross, cities around the world have some
bizarre tourist attractions. The list
includes...

YUNESSUN SPA RESORT

Japan's Hakone Kowakien Yunessun Hot
Springs Amusement Park & Spa Resort not
only allows you to take a relaxing dip in
your run-of-the-mill jacuzzis, but you can
bathe in spas filled with sake, green tea,
coffee or red wine.

ISLAND OF THE DOLLS

Mexico's Isla de las Munecas is creepy and
weird. Dedicated to the lost soul of a young
girl (creepy), the island is populated by
hundreds of old, decomposing baby dolls
hanging from trees - the dolls are believed
to possess the soul of the dead girl.

BUBBLEGUM ALLEY
Bubblegum Alley is an attraction you can
be a part of. The wall of chewed
bubblegum in San Luis Obispo, Calif., has
beengrowing since the 1970s. The sticky,
colourful wall is a must-see for gum
chewers.

AVANOS HAIR MUSEUM

Avanos is a small town in the Cappodocian
area of Turkey. The Hair Museum is one of
the strangest bizarre museums in the
world. A dark cavern that sits below a
pottery shop, the "museum" features
thousands of locks of hair.

CAPUCHIN CATACOMBS
Located in Palermo, Italy, the Capuchin
Catacombs are bone-chillingly creepy.
Eight thousand incredibly well-preserved
mummies dressed in their finest garb line
the walls of these tombs, which tourists can
today stroll through. Many of the bodies are
posed - making them even eerier.