The last bit of the Bendy Boxer is removed.

Hugh Shaw, the Secretary of States Representative for Maritime Salvage and Intervention, SOSREP, officially declared an end to the salvage and wreck removal operations of the MSC Napoli on Thursday 29th July 2009, 924 days after it all began.

The MSC Napoli, the subject of The Case of the Bendy Boxer, was beached at Branscombe on Saturday 20 January 2007 and since then there have been several salvage and wreck removal phases aimed initially at removing her fuel oil, then her cargo, and ultimately the wreck of the MSC Napoli itself.

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On August 2, Douglas B. Stevenson, of the Seaman’s Church Institute, will embark on an eight-day journey that will take him through “Pirate Alley,” the pirate infested waters off the coast of Somalia, as a guest aboard the cargo ship, Maersk Idaho.

As the director of SCI’s Center for Seafarers’ Rights, the world’s only full-time, free legal-aid program for merchant mariners, Stevenson is embarking on this journey to learn firsthand about the experience of sailors who routinely travel pirate-infested waters.

“SCI has a commitment to seafarers’ well-being,” said Stevenson, in a news release. “We want to make sure that we understand what is happening to them so that we can offer them every support they need.”

Stevenson plans to share his observations in real-time via the Twitter instant-messaging website. Follow him here. In addition to his research, Stevenson hopes his journey also will draw attention to the work of professional seafarers.

Media attention focused on “Pirate Alley” in April when pirates seized the Maersk Alabama, a cargo ship owned by the U.S.-based Maersk Line Ltd. and held its captain, Richard Phillips, hostage at gunpoint for five days. U.S. Navy Seals rescued Phillips on April 12.

SCI honored Phillips with its first Courage at Sea Award in June. It was during the planning of the award ceremony for Phillips that Stevenson and Maersk sailors conceived of the trip, said Oliver Brewer, SCI’s media contact, in a telephone interview.

The data Stevenson will collect and his observations will also contribute to a clinical study of piracy’s effects on merchant mariners and their families that is being conducted by SCI in conjunction with the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and the New York Psychoanalytic Institute. The first of its kind in the maritime industry, the study explores the clinical assessment and treatment of piracy attack survivors.

Somalia pirates have carried out hundreds of attacks this year, and more are feared as monsoon season comes to an end. More than 25,000 merchant ships pass through the Gulf of Aden annually, according to news reports.

Stevenson will depart from Port Said in northeastern Egypt through the Gulf of Aden, aka “Pirate Alley,” en route to the United Arab Emirates’ port city Dubai.

When asked whether he was afraid, Stevenson said: “I have great confidence in Maersk Idaho’s security arrangements and in the competence of its crew.”

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Coast Guard Ends Search for 67 Haitians Missing after Shipwreck
Latin American Herald Tribune
Fifteen Haitians died and 119 were rescued in a joint operation by the Coast Guard and Turks and Caicos maritime police.

Vessels without enough crew ‘are a hazard to shipping’
Scotsman
… the officer of the watch had been asleep for over three hours before the accident, while the vessel ploughed on like an unguided missile.

Mallorca target of Spain’s second attack in two days
Christian Science Monitor
… took the unusual step of shutting the island’s airport and ship terminals, effectively sealing off the island from the outside world for a few hours.

Sharp rise in crew abandonment cases
Lloyd’s List – London,UK
Another example — taken at random from the Lloyd’s MIU casualty service — is … to approval at the International Maritime Organization and International

Fire disrupts Atlantic ferry services for second straight day
The Canadian Press
A firefighter and one crew member were taken to hospital after the fire in the heating unit of the ferry. The vessel returned to North Sydney after the fire

Napoli salvage is declared over
BBC News
It was being taken to Portland in Dorset when the decision was taken to deliberately ground the vessel to try to prevent pollution damage to the world

Barge operators ask Marina to exclude them from CPC requirement …
Business Mirror
“Not all vessels will meet an accident. That is why there should be an actuarial study and the same should be done per sector since financial responsibility

US Congress Working on 2010 Appropriations for Loran-C and eloran …
Inside GNSS
eloran also has strong support from the General Lighthouse Authorities (GLA) of the UK and Ireland (equivalent to USCG for maritime safety,

Interferry joins IMO ro-pax safety review
Maritime Journal
The expert group submitted an initial report to the IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee after meeting for the first time during the recent MSC 86 session in

PIRACY/CRIME

Bill requiring cruise lines to share reports of on-board crime …
Gaea Times
The Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act tightens restrictions on an industry that has long evaded much scrutiny — in part because of the complexity of

UNDER THE RADAR

Fire destroys replica of 17th-century Dutch flagship, a major …
By Bureau News
Fire destroys replica of 17th-century Dutch flagship, a major tourist attraction. Bureau News. July 30th, 2009. Fire guts replica of 17th-century tall ship. AMSTERDAM — Fire consumed a replica of the 17th-century flagship of the Dutch

Expert gets in the middle of explosive situations

Explosives expert James Dahn was asked by Chinese officials for advice on transporting fireworks after a powerful blast had ripped through a cargo ship bound from Singapore to Hamburg. One crewman was killed, and a spectacular fire burned for four days on the 900-foot vessel.
That scenario could happen again, said Dahn of Rolling Meadows, who will discuss the dangers such cargoes present at a United Nations conference next month in Tokyo.

Mary Rose grant fully approved

Celebrations to mark the 500th anniversary of Henry VIII’s accession to the throne this year have come to a fitting culmination with the announcement that the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has recently given full approval for a £21m grant to the Mary Rose Trust.

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Fire forces ferry to return to NS
CBC.ca
It’s the second time that a fire has broken out in the Atlantic Vision’s thermal heating unit. The last fire occurred in December 2008 before the vessel was

Concern as ship goes up in flames
The Citizen Daily
According to Infrastructure Development Ministry permanent secretary Omar Chambo, in yesterday’s accident, fire started at around 10 am when MV Pemba,

Boat fire off Protection Island sends one to hospital
KING5.com
A ship burns in near Protection Island in the Strait of Juan de Fuca on Wednesday, July 29, 2009. The three rescued men were later transferred to a boat Read the rest of this entry »

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Fire forces Marine Atlantic ferry bound for NL to return to NS wharf
The Canadian Press
Fire broke out in a boiler room shortly after Christmas last year and just last month, the ship suddenly changed course on its own and veered toward the

Search crews find body of Exeter fisherman
Providence Journal
At 5:20 am, the Coast Guard located the man’s boat, the 25-foot fishing vessel Chelsea Ann, anchored just northeast of Quonset Point in North Kingstown,

Port falls silent as first victim of Aquila sinking is laid to rest
Aberdeen Press and Journal
A salvage vessel is understood to be awaiting the arrival of special compressor equipment that will be used to refloat the Aquila and then tow her into port Read the rest of this entry »

Capri is, of course, a pleasant island off the Italian coast, south west of Napoli, about which folk have sung irritating songs. Carpi is also Italian, and also pleasant, but it’s a long way from Capri. In fact it’s a few kilometres nor’ east of Bologna and well landbound. That didn’t stop a couple of Swedish tourists who, navigating their car to Capri, mistyped ‘Carpi’ into their in-car GPS navigation system.

They blindly followed their electronic navigation system, arrived in the village of Carpi without noticing that they weren’t on an island, and asked directions to Capri’s famous Blue Grotto.

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