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Showing posts from April, 2013

GREAT YARMOUTH MARITIME RESCUE COORDINATION CENTRE CLOSES

Great Yarmouth Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) will close on 1 May 2013 . There will be no reduction in front line rescue resources, which remain unchanged by the modernisation of HM Coastguard. The availability of Coastguard Rescue Teams, lifeboats, rescue helicopters and other rescue facilities in the area will be wholly unaffected. When Great Yarmouth MRCC closes, full operational responsibility will transfer to Humber MRCC. The MRCC at Walton-on-the-Naze, known as Thames Coastguard, will act in support of Humber MRCC. Chief Coastguard Peter Dymond said: “ Safety is our top priority and I am confident that the same high quality search and rescue service will be maintained throughout. There will be no reduction in front line rescue resources. “The availability of lifeboats, rescue helicopters, Coastguard Rescue Teams and other rescue facilities in the area will be unaffected. 'I am very grateful to the staff at Yarmouth Coastguard, who have served th

ABERDEEN COASTGUARD APPEAL FOR INFORMATION IN SEARCH FOR THREE CREW AND VESSEL

At  10.34 am  today, MRCC Aberdeen received a telephone call from a Dutch national concerned for the crew of the Dutch vessel Warnow. The vessel had originally sailed from  Holland  with eight crew onboard and had called in at Middlesborough, and then continued to Stonehaven, where five crew disembarked. It then departed Stonehaven, with three crew onboard on the 15th April, bound for  Norway . They were expected to arrive on 22nd April, but no-one has heard from them since the 15 th  April. The vessel is a Dutch flagged 15 metre steel-hulled, former pilot boat with a black hull, white cabin, the vessel has been converted to have a mast and sails. There are three Dutch nationals onboard. Anyone with information is asked to contact  Aberdeen  coastguard on 01224 592 334 or VHF Channel 16 or Medium frequency 2182 khz.

FOUR PEOPLE RESCUED AFTER VESSEL RUNS AGROUND AT PADSTOW

Four people have been rescued after their vessel ran aground on rocks just outside Padstow Harbour, Cornwall. Falmouth Coastguard received a radio call from the former fishing vessel ‘Courageous 2’ at just before 4am to say that they had run aground on a sandbank off Padstow, the Doom Bar. At 4.20am the vessel reported that they had re-floated and were on their way to Padstow however at just after 4.45am they called again to say that they needed urgent assistance as they had run aground against the rocks just outside Padstow. The Padstow RNLI Lifeboat, Rock Inshore Lifeboat Lifeboat, the RNLI Rescue Helicopter from Culdrose and Palzeath Coastguard Rescue team were sent to the scene. Four people were brought safely ashore by the Padstow lifeboat where they received medical assistance. The vessel, which had 900 litres of fuel on board, is now reported to have broken up and a small oil slick has been spotted just off Greenaway Beach. The MAIB has been informed. Falmouth Watch

GLIDER DITCHES WEST OF PORLOCK

At 5pm Swansea Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre were called by a glider pilot reporting that he had ditched his 15 meter glider 1 nautical mile west of Porlock, Somerset. The glider pilot was uninjured and managed to swim 15 meters to shore. His fibreglass glider has sunk and vessels in the area are being advised to be aware of any possible drifting debris. Minehead Coastguard Rescue Team went to the scene to offer assistance to the pilot.   The pilot reported that his tail hit the water first and he flipped over and went in to the water upside down. He allowed the cabin to fill with water before he hit the release button. This allowed him to float to the surface. The pilot had a lifejacket.

SEARCH FOR FISHING VESSEL OFF EASDALE ISLAND

A search is underway this afternoon for a fishing vessel off Easdale Island . Stornoway Coastguard heard a mayday message from the vessel just after 1pm this afternoon. It said the vessel, with one person on board, was going over. A mayday relay broadcast was issued by Stornoway Coastguard, and a number of vessels in the area at the time responded. The Oban Coastguard Rescue Team, the all-weather RNLI lifeboat from Oban, and the Royal Navy search and rescue helicopter from Prestwick was also sent to the scene. Carol Collins, Watch Manager at Stornoway Coastguard, said: “A search is still ongoing this afternoon involving a number of search and rescue assets. We are doing all we can to locate the vessel.” UPDATE: 16.35 Thursday 25 April RNLI Tobermory all-weather lifeboat is joining the search.

FISHING VESSEL SKIPPER FINED AFTER COLLIDING WITH TANKER IN BRISTOL CHANNEL

The skipper of a  Belgium  registered beam trawler has today been ordered to pay a total of £2,345 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to offences under the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (Colregs). Jeffry Demeester, the skipper of FV Deborah, appeared at West Hampshire Magistrates Court this morning. During the early hours of  18 January 2012 , the  Hong Kong  registered  tanker   Sea  Transport was in the  Bristol Channel  waiting for orders to enter Milford Haven. The tanker was fully loaded, with an estimated 90,000 tonnes of crude oil on board. Weather conditions at the time were poor with driving rain. The FV Deborah was outward bound from Milford Haven heading towards  Belgium . The skipper was alone on the bridge. He did notice the ship on AIS and radar but made an incorrect assessment that he would miss the ship. He did not realise that the FV Deborah was on a collision course with the Sea Transport. Shortly after 1am on 18 Ja

WELL-EQUIPPED KAYAKER FOUND SAFE AND WELL

A well-equipped kayaker who became fatigued and who had ingested sea water after his kayak capsized has been rescued off Seaford  this afternoon. The man made a mayday broadcast from his handheld VHF radio at just after  2.00 pm  requesting assistance because he was in difficulty having capsized and was now very cold. He was dressed in a dry suit with a buoyancy aid and was also carrying a  GPS . Solent Coastguard requested the Newhaven RNLI Lifeboat to launch and scrambled the Coastguard helicopter from Lee on  Solent . The lifeboat quickly located the kayaker, who by this point had managed to get back into his kayak, but was cold and wet and had ingested a significant amount of sea water. The kayaker was taken onboard the lifeboat and was brought back to shore where paramedics from an awaiting ambulance were able to examine him, before giving him some advice about symptoms to look out for following sea water ingestion. Tony Wheeler, Solent Coastguard Watch Manager says:

YACHT LOCATED MORE THAN 200 MILES OFF ISLES OF SCILLY AFTER EPIRB ACTIVATION

A lone yachtsman has been found safe and well after his Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) was activated in the Bay of Biscay . Falmouth Coastguard made an emergency broadcast via Inmarsat after picking up the distress alert from the Norwegian yacht Ghost just after 10pm last night, when the vessel was 220 nautical miles south west of the Isles of Scilly. A number of vessels responded and Falmouth Coastguard also liaised with Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres (MRCCs) in France and Spain . The French authorities sent a fixed wing aircraft, but they were unable to communicate with the Ghost via VHF radio. A yacht called Mariette, from Falmouth , which was sailing in the area, was spotted by the French aircraft and asked to assist. The Mariette was able to get alongside the Ghost and passed over a handheld VHF radio which enabled the yachtsman to communicate with those assisting him. Two crew from the Mariette also boarded the yacht and found it was takin

BRIXHAM COASTGUARD RECOVER CLIFF FALLER

At 7pm this evening South West Ambulance Control requested assistance from Brixham Coastguard for a 22 year old male suffering a fractured left femur following a 20 metre fall from the main cliff, Daddyhole Cove, Torquay, Devon.  The man had been climbing with friends when his equipment failed and he fell from the top of the cliff.   Brixham Coastguard tasked Torbay and Berry Head Coastguard Rescue Teams and the South East Devon Sector Manager to the cliff. The Coastguard Rescue Helicopter (Rescue 106) was scrambled and Brixham Coastguard also requested Police attendance to the scene.  The Coastguard Rescue helicopter airlifted the casualty to the top of the cliff where he was stabilised by paramedics and then transferred to Torbay Hospital for further treatment by ambulance. Brixham Coastguard Watch Manager, David Colmer, said "This group had gone climbing with the best intentions, but equipment failure caused this serious accident. This man was fortunate that his group k

LATEST: SEABIRDS POLLUTION

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has received reports of seabirds being washed ashore covered in a waxy substance along parts of the Devon and Cornwall coastline. The MCA is liaising with partner agencies to find out the extent of the problem, and if at all possible, to determine the source. UPDATE: 16:00 Friday 19 April The Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s Counter Pollution branch is trying to identify the source of the PIB that has contaminated seabirds off the south west coast. PIB is a commonly used chemical carried in large quantities around the world by chemical tankers. Residue of PIB can be legally discharged from ships under controlled defined conditions set by the International Maritime Organization ( IMO ) Prevention of Pollution Convention (MARPOL). The MCA is currently collecting data of the ships that passed through the area during a specific time frame, and looking through detailed cargo manifests. This is time consuming and resource intensive, but

EIGHT FOREIGN FLAGGED SHIPS UNDER DETENTION IN THE UK DURING MARCH 2013

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) announced today that eight foreign flagged ships were under detention in UK ports during March 2013 after failing Port State Control ( PSC ) inspection.   Latest monthly figures show that there were four new detentions of foreign flagged vessels in UK ports during March 2013 and four vessels remained under detention from previous months. Seven vessels remained under detention at the end of March. The overall rate of detentions compared with inspections carried out over the last twelve months was 3.34% this is slightly down from February’s twelve month rate.   Out of the detained vessels five were registered with a flag state listed on the Paris MOU white list, two was registered with a flag state on the grey list, none were registered with a flag state on the black list, one was unregistered and none were registered with a flag state that was not included on the Paris MOU white, grey or black lists.   In response to one of the