Maritime Vessels Directory

An explosion injured several firefighters battling a blaze on board car carrier Höegh Xiamen at berth in Jacksonville, Fla. Thursday.The eight responders have been transported to the hospital for serious injuries, including two taken by air and two by ground to to Shands Gainesville burn unit. They are all in stable condition.All of the ship's 21 crew members are off the ship, uninjured and accounted for, the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department (JFRD) said.The U.S. Coast Guard said its watchstanders at Sector Jacksonville were notified at 3:53 p.m.

Ocean Shipping Slows Down as Pandemic Pummels Retailers

2 hours ago

The $1 trillion container shipping industry is in a slowdown. Literally.Some shipping lines, whose retail customers are being hammered by the coronavirus pandemic, are reducing sailing speeds and taking longer routes around Africa, avoiding Suez canal passage fees, according to the companies and ship-tracking specialists.Many are also cutting down the number of voyages and providing short-term storage for clients as the industry, which includes heavyweights like Maersk, MSC and Hapag-Lloyd, faces its biggest downturn since the 2008 financial crisis.

Princess Cruises Extends Suspension of Some Voyages

12 hours ago

Carnival Corp’s Princess Cruises on Thursday extended the suspension of some of its voyages in Australia, Canada and Taiwan as ports around the world remain shut due to the coronavirus crisis.Cruise lines, hammered by a crisis which has seen some ships develop into high-profile infection hotspots, in recent days have been steadily pushing back cancellations well into the second half of 2020.Princess Cruises, long a favorite of older travelers, said it has extended the delay of operations on all cruises sailing in and out of Australia through mid-September on the Sea Princess, Majestic Princess, Sun Princess and Sapphire Princess.

Kongsberg's LARS for Ocean Infinity's Armada Robotic Ships

35 minutes ago

Norway's Kongsberg Maritime has signed its first contract for its ROV launch & recovery system (LARS) specifically designed to handle remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) from unmanned vessels.The contract has been signed with Ocean Infinity, who will install the system on their Armada fleet of robotic ships.To remind, US-based seabed survey and ocean exploration company Ocean Infinity in February launched Armada, a new marine technology and data company boasting the industry's largest fleet of unmanned surface vehicles (USV).

Most Ships Calling UK Ports Since Start of COVID Lockdown

12 hours ago

The number of ships arriving in British ports in late May rose to the highest since the start of the country’s coronavirus lockdown, Britain’s statistics office said on Thursday.The Office for National Statistics, which publishes short-term data to track the economic impact of the COVID crisis, said there was an average of 341 daily ship visits between May 25 and May 31, the highest rolling average since March 23.(Writing by William Schomberg, editing by Andy Bruce)

Maritime Reporter and Engineering News (May 2020)

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