Capsizing Ships might become the norm.

[Starr DiGiacomo]

In less than a week, I have noted 3 ships capsizing, 1 in Baja, MX, July 4th.....another in Jayapura, Papua and the most recent in Russia in the Volga River.

Across the globe we hear more and more stories of fisherman who can't bring their boats out to do their work.  The seas are angry and unpredictable.  Here''s another story of a fishing boat carrying 27 tourists with 16 Mexican crew members struggling in the sea when the ship capsized.

California residents rescued in fatal boat accident in Mexico

July 4, 2011 |  1:33 pm

   

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One person was reported dead and seven others missing Monday afternoon after a fishing boat carrying 27 U.S. tourists and 16 Mexican crew members capsized in rough seas in the Sea of Cortez, officials said.

The 27 tourists, most of them from California, were aboard the charter vessel Erick when a sudden storm struck the area about 2:30 a.m., hurling people into the ocean in the vicinity of San Luis Island, about 60 miles south of the Baja California port of San Felipe, the Mexican Navy said in a statement. The body water in which the ship capsized is also known as the Gulf of California.

View Capsized vessel in a larger map

"The weather was calm, and then a strong wind came,"  Dora Winkler, a spokeswoman with the Port of San Felipe, told the Los Angeles Times.

Some of the first people rescued -- two tourists and the boat's cook -- were plucked from the water by a Mexican fishing boat, according to Winkler.

All of the 16 Mexican crew members were rescued, she said. The tourist who died was only identified as an adult male. Initial reports said six people were missing; officials later raised the number to seven.

A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter from San Diego was assisting the Mexican navy as rescue crews scoured the area for survivors, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Pamela Boehland.

She said the Coast Guard was told by the Mexican Navy that most of the passengers were from Northern California and that one was from Port Angeles, Wash. The search was launched after one of the victims swam to shore and alerted Mexican officials, Boehland said.

"He swam to shore and actually walked to the nearest location," Boehland said, adding that she was unsure whether it was a town or village.

Mexican officials said all of the survivors were wearing life jackets. They were taken to local hospitals and appeared to be in good condition, the Mexican Navy said.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/07/fishing-boat-sinks-sa...

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/04/19/400751342/up-to-700-...

Hundreds Of Migrants Feared Dead In Capsized Boat Off North Africa

APRIL 19, 2015 8:04 AM ET

Personnel at work in the operations room of the Italian Coast Guard in Rome, Italy on Sunday during the coordination of relief efforts after a ship carrying hundreds of migrants capsizes off Libyan coast occurred in the Strait of Sicily.

Hundreds of would-be migrants from North Africa who were trying to reach Europe are missing and feared drowned after their boat capsized about 120 miles south of the Italian island of Lampedusa. Officials say it could be the largest-ever such tragedy on the Mediterranean.

Officials engaged in a major air-and-sea rescue in the Mediterranean say that so far 28 people have been rescued along with the recovery of 24 bodies. As many as 700 are still missing after the overcrowded fishing boat capsized and sank overnight. Although it is not uncommon for such migrant boats to come to grief in the Mediterranean, the sheer loss of life in the latest incident appears to be particularly large.

Adrian Edwards, a spokesman from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva, tells NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday that some 20 ships from Italy and Malta, as well as several helicopters were engaged in the search.

"There are many, many bodies in the water.," Edwards says.

"We are hoping there are survivors among them," he tells Weekend Edition. "But, it's really a matter of very great concern," adding that if the numbers of dead reported are confirmed, "we are looking at the single largest tragedy so far on the Mediterranean."

The Times of Malta reports that the migrants went overboard when they rushed to one side of the boat to alert a passing ship. A Maltese patrol boat was helping in the rescue effort and the island's prime minister, Joseph Muscat, said: "They are literally trying to find people alive among the dead floating in the water."

The disaster comes only a week after 400 others were reported dead in a similar capsize near Lampedusa.

The Associated Press notes: "The capsizing comes amid a wave of migrants trying to leave Libya for Italian shores. So far, at least 900 have died trying this year."

For many people fleeing North Africa, including the ongoing fighting in Libya, the island of Lampedusa represents the closest outpost of European Union territory from which they hope to move onward and settle elsewhere in the EU.

Reuters writes: "The new deaths fueled calls for a stronger response from Europe to the increasingly deadly migrant crisis playing out in the Mediterranean. International aid groups and Italian authorities have [criticized] Europe's so-called "Triton" border protection operation, which recently replaced a more comprehensive Italian search-and-rescue mission.

"A tragedy is unfolding in the Mediterranean, and if the EU and the world continue to close their eyes, it will be judged in the harshest terms as it was judged in the past when it closed its eyes to genocides when the comfortable did nothing," Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat was quoted by Reuters as saying.

In February, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres reiterated a call for the European Union to expand operation "Triton."

Updated at 2:45 p.m. EDT. EU To Discuss Situation on Monday:

Reuters quotes EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini as saying the foreign ministers of the EU would discuss the issue at a meeting Monday in Luxembourg.

Update at 8:30 EDT. Even More May Have Been Aboard; U.N. Responds

A survivor told Italian prosecutors that more migrants than previously estimated may have been on board the ship, the AP reports.

The wire service says the survivor indicated the ship contained 950 people, "including hundreds who were locked in the hold by smugglers," but that this account has not been confirmed.

Meanwhile, the U.N. Secretary-General's office issued a statement saying Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon is "shocked and deeply saddened" by reports of the event.

"The international response to this must be comprehensive and collective," the Secretary-General's spokesman writes. "The challenge concerns not only improved rescue at sea and access to protection. It is how to ensure the right to asylum of the growing number of people worldwide fleeing war who need refuge and safe haven."

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://news.yahoo.com/400-migrants-died-boat-capsize-off-libya-ngos...

Up to 400 migrants died in boat capsize off Libya: survivors

Rome (AFP) - Up to 400 illegal migrants died after their vessel capsized off the Libyan coast on Sunday, said survivors who were brought to Italy, where tension is mounting over a surge in boat arrivals from North Africa.

The Italian coastguard on Monday said they had managed to rescue 144 of the people on the sunken vessel, while nine bodies were also recovered.

The International Organization for Migration and the charity Save the Children said between 144 and 150 survivors arrived at Reggio Calabria, on Italy's southern tip, on Tuesday morning.

"There were 400 victims in this shipwreck, which occurred 24 hours after (their vessel) left the Libyan coast," Save the Children said in a statement, citing survivors.

"There were several young males, probably minors, among the victims" and also children among those rescued, the international NGO said.

IOM spokesman in Italy Flavio Di Giacomo told AFP several of the survivors had told his organisation there were between 500 and 550 people on board when the ship sank.

"We are continuing to investigate in order to understand how the shipwreck happened," Di Giacomo said.

Initial investigations indicate the boat may have capsized after passengers started moving when they saw the Italian rescue team.

View gallery

http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/Part-DV-DV2005730-1-1-0.jpg" width="300"/>

Video grab, released by the Italian Coast Guard, of a rescue operation of migrants off the coast of  …

The latest tragedy came as Italian authorities said around 8,500 migrants had been rescued at sea between Friday and Monday, reigniting a debate in Italy about whether the country has a duty to house all new arrivals.

Recent good weather in the Mediterranean has prompted a spike in the number of migrants attempting to reach Italy aboard boats.

An increasingly violent and chaotic situation in Libya, a key jumping off point for migrants, has also helped prompt the hike in asylum seekers trying to make it to Europe.

- Row over migrant beds -

Italian authorities say more than 15,000 migrants have arrived so far in 2015. There were 15,000 in April alone last year and an average of 25,000 each month between June and September.

Italy's interior ministry has ordered regional prefects to find emergency housing for 6,500 migrants -- a move condemned by the opposition, which argues the policy of rescuing immigrants encourages others to attempt the risky sea journey.

Matteo Salvini, head of the anti-immigrant Northern League, on Tuesday urged local officials not to cooperate.

"I ask the League's governors, mayors, assessors and councillors to say no, with every means, to every new arrival. The League is ready to occupy every hotel, hostel, school or barracks intended for the alleged refugees," Salvini said on Facebook.

With summer approaching -- and more than 500,000 people waiting to set out from Libya for Europe according to EU border agency Frontex -- aid groups are warning Rome is not prepared to deal with the next wave of arrivals.

Greece said Tuesday it was planning to set up reception centres on the mainland to deal with an influx of migrants arriving on its islands.

The decision at an emergency cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras came after more than 700 migrants and refugees, mainly Syrians and Africans, arrived in Greece between Friday and Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Frontex on Tuesday said human traffickers had fired shots into the air to recover a vessel that had been used to transport migrants across the Mediterranean.

The incident happened on Monday when an Icelandic coastguard vessel was rescuing 250 people from a wooden boat some 60 nautical miles off Libya.

It was the second such incident this year after the Italian coastguard was confronted by armed traffickers in February, who ordered a boat be handed over once the rescue operation was complete.

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/04/10/21-people-drown-haiti...

10 APR 2015 - 8:42AM

21 people drown in Haiti boat capsize

Twenty-one would-be migrants have died and 17 are feared drowned after their boat capsized after hitting poor weather off the north of Haiti.

At least 21 people have died and 17 others are missing in a suspected boat capsizing off Haiti's northern coast.

The group was among 50 believed to be aboard a boat heading to the nearby Turks and Caicos Islands.

Survivors have told police the boat encountered bad weather and tried to return to Haiti when it hit something, according to Jean Henri Petit, an official with Haiti's Civil Protection Department.

The bodies began to wash ashore on Thursday morning in the coastal town of Le Borgne, about 160km north of Port-au-Prince, police inspector Jean Mesamours said.

Families of 10 of the victims have picked up the bodies, while the other 11 dead have been buried in a mass grave because no one has claimed them, Petit says.

The Turks and Caicos Islands are a popular destination for Haitian migrants despite authorities warning them the voyage is perilous.

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.voanews.com/content/russian-trawler-sinks/2703635.html

56 Dead After Russian Trawler Sinks

Russian Emergencies Ministry ship is seen through the window of a helicopter during a rescue operation after a Russian trawler Dalniy Vostok sank off the coast of Kamchatka, off the Sea of Okhotsk in Russia in this April 2, 2015 photo provided by Russia's

VOA News

Last updated on: April 02, 2015 2:44 PM

At least 56 people are dead after a Russian trawler sank in the Sea of Okhotsk in Russia's far east Wednesday.

Emergency officials said 63 of 132 of the crew members on aboard the ship were rescued after the Dalniy Vostok sank in icy waters near Russia's Kamchatka peninsula. Thirteen people are still missing.

Officials say the ship sank in a mere 15 minutes, with the water temperature near the freezing mark.

The most seriously injured were being airlifted to the city of Magadan, some 250 kilometers to the north.

Sea of Ohotsk, Russia

At least 14 local fishing vessels are helping with the search and rescue mission.

The trawler was carrying 78 Russians and 54 foreign nationals from Myanmar, Ukraine, Lithuania and Vanuatu.

The cause of the accident is still not known, although investigators say the ship may have hit an object in the water. A local official told Reuters news agency that the crew may have violated safety rules by overloading it, affecting its balance.

History of transportation disasters 

Russia has a long history of road, air and sea disasters, many caused by negligence or violation of safety regulations.

"At this time we do not know what might have caused the tragedy,'' Viktor Klepikov, coordinating captain of the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky maritime rescue coordination centre conducting the search, told Reuters by telephone.

Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov said more than 10 possible causes were being considered by investigators.

But the acting governor of Sakhalin island, Oleg Kozhemyako, told LifeNews television: "Given the fact that the tragedy occurred quickly and unexpectedly, and the ship was registered and met all technical requirements, I think there was a violation of rules when it comes to overload and balancing of the vessel.''

Russia's TASS news agency quoted Sergei Khabarov, deputy head of the Kamchatka region, as saying the cargo storage capacity may have been exceeded.

President Vladimir Putin sent his condolences and ordered all necessary measures to help the survivors, some of whom were suffering from hypothermia.

Poor safety record 

The home port of the trawler, which was owned by Magellan LLC, was Nevelsk in Russia's Sakhalin region.

It was one of Russia's worst maritime disasters in decades.  In 2011, an ageing, overcrowded tourist boat sank in Russia's Volga River, killing 122 people.

More than 50 died when a drilling rig with 67 crew on board capsized and sank off Sakhalin in December 2011 while being towed through a winter storm.

In August 2000, during his first term as president, Putin faced criticism for not acting quickly over the sinking of a nuclear-powered submarine on which all 118 people aboard died.

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2015/apr/01/4-drown-9-missin...

published: 01:25 april 1, 2015

4 drown, 9 missing in boat capsize 

Four people died and nine others went missing as a boat capsized in the Padma River at Shibganj upazila under the district on Monday night.

The deceased were identified as Jonab Ali, 55, son of Eshak Ali of Monohorpur, Tazrin Khatoon, 17, daughter of Azizul Haque of Bheshapara village, Sumi Akhter, an SSC examinee and daughter of

Arshad Ali of Raninagar village, and Rishad, 9, son of Nasir Uddin of Monkosha village of the upazila.

Local sources said a boat carrying 15-16 people and 7-8 cattle from Gaipara village to Monohorpur capsized in the middle of the river being hit by a stormy wind.

Although some of the people on board managed to ashore, several of them had remained missing since the boat capsize, said Durlabhpur UP chairman Abu Ahmed Nazmul Kabir Mukta.

Moinul Islam, officer-in-charge of Shibganj police station said on information, police forces had been sent to the spot and they had started rescue operation.

A rescue team started for the spot.

Local people were also continuing their rescue operation from night.

They became angry to the team for late protested the negligence of the authority concern. 

 

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/21-killed-47-mis...

21 killed, 47 missing in Myanmar boat capsize

March 14, 2015 Last Updated at 13:58 IST

At least 21 people were killed and 47 went missing, including 30 women, when a double-decker boat capsized in Myanmar's western Rakhine state, officials said on Saturday.

The boat 'Aung Dakun-3', with about 214 passengers on board, capsized in Myay Pone township while heading from Kyaukphyu harbour to Sittway late on Friday night, Xinhua news agency reported.

Of those on board, 167 passengers have been rescued so far, officials said.

The accident happened after the boat hit a big rock.

A search operation is continuing to locate the missing people.

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/world/article/at-least-10-migran...

At least 10 migrants die in boat capsize near Italy

Published: 4 March 2015 5:35 PM

A commemoration of a boating tragedy is held in Italy late last year. On Tuesday, at least 10 migrants were killed trying to reach Italy when their vessel capsized. – Reuters pic, March 4, 2015.At least 10 migrants trying to reach Italy died when their rubber boat overturned in the southern Mediterranean, the coast guard said on Wednesday.

The boat, which capsized on Tuesday about 80 kilometres north of Libya, was carrying about 130 people at the time, the coast guard said in a statement.

A coast guard ship in the area managed to rescue most of the migrants. Ten bodies were recovered.

The coast guard ship was already carrying 318 migrants rescued in a previous mission on Tuesday and was now heading to a Sicilian port.

Seven separate missions in a 24-hour period had rescued a total of 941 migrants, including 30 children and 50 women, one of them pregnant, the coast guard said.

Last month, more than 300 people died trying to cross the sea from Africa to Italy in a one-week period. Most of the boats leave from Libya, which is in a state of near-anarchy and where smugglers charge up to US$2,000 (RM7,300) for the crossing.

Italy ended its large-scale search-and-rescue mission Mare Nostrum last year because of the cost and amid criticism from some who said it merely encouraged people to make the crossing.

Mare Nostrum was set up after more than 360 migrants drowned when their boat capsized near the Italian coast in October 2013.

It has been replaced by an EU border control mission, Triton, that does not have a specific search-and-rescue mandate and which has fewer ships and a smaller area of operation that hugs close to the Italian coast instead of reaching toward Africa like Mare Nostrum did. – Reuters, March 4, 2015.

[Yvonne Lawson]

Cargo ship carrying 25 people runs aground off the Isle of Wight (UK)

• The Hoegh Osaka left Southampton at  8.21pm en-route to Bremerhaven and ran aground off the Isle of  Wight
• A coastguard helicopter and three  RNLI lifeboats helped rescue the crew of the 180-metre car  transporter
• It is understood one of the 25 crew  may have sustained a broken leg during the  incident
• The 52,000-tonne vessel was listing  at a 45-degree angle after the accident with tugs waiting for high tide at  10.30am
• The vessel suffered a mechanical  malfunction and changed course, striking the Bramble Bank at 9.30pm last  night

A  massive car transporter cargo ship has run aground shortly after leaving  Southampton.

The Hoegh Osaka  left port at around 20:21 but ran aground less than an hour later, within sight  of the Isle of Wight.

The 180-metre long  vessel is listing badly to one side following the incident. RNLI lifeboats  attended the scene as well as the coast guard helicopter.

The Singapore  registered vessel was heading to the German port of Bremerhaven at the time of  the incident.

The vessel was  built in 2000 and has a maximum weight of almost 158,000 tonnes.  It is  understood the cargo ship, which has a nine-metre draught, turned sharply to the  left as it passed the notorious Bramble Bank sandbank near Cowes and run  aground.

It is believed the  vessel may have suffered a major failure of its navigation system.  

A spokesman for  the RNLI said: 'Currently four RNLI Lifeboats from Calshot, Cowes and Yarmouth  are in attendance alongside the Solent Coastguard Helicopter, Southampton Patrol  and four tug boats, two from Esso and two from Southampton Docks.

'The ship's crew  are being rescued from the water and from on board the stricken vessel, which is  at a list of 45 degrees.'

According to the  Isle of Wight based Island Echo, a number of the casualties were  rescued from the water, while the Captain and First Officer have remained aboard  to assist with the rescue operation.

It is understood  the 158,000 tonne vessel suffered a mechanical malfunction as it swung off  course, striking the Bramble Bank.

It is hoped the  massive transporter could be refloated at high tide at 10.30am.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2895837/Car-transporter-car...

 

[Yvonne Lawson]

Eight crew feared dead after cargo vessel overturns off the Scottish coast as  search and rescue operation is suspended

Eight people were  missing and feared dead last night after a cargo ship overturned in stormy seas  off the Scottish coast.

A major air and  sea rescue operation was launched after the upturned hull of the vessel was  spotted by the crew of a passing ferry.

But last night  hopes of finding survivors were fading as weather conditions deteriorated  dramatically and the search was called off until this morning.

The stricken  vessel is believed to be the Cypriot-registered Cemfjord. It is thought to be  carrying a cargo of cement and had been heading for Runcorn,  Cheshire.

Earlier today,  Bill Farquhar, from RNLI Thurso, told BBC News that the last known position  of the ship had been at 1.15 pm yesterday, adding: 'The weather at that time  yesterday was pretty bad.

He said: 'I don't  know what has happened after that. There was no mayday as such.

'It is very, very  strange, especially with all the weather technology we have  nowadays.'

Mr Farquhar said:  'Whatever happened, it happened very rapidly.'

A spokeswoman for  the RNLI said the lifeboats had been stood down and are returning to their  stations.

It is expected  they will resume the search at first light if requested by the  Coastguard.

None of the crew  have so far been found.

The Cemfjord was  drifting at 5.2 knots, roughly 6 mph, according to readings on marinetraffic.com  that were recorded yesterday. It left port in Aalborg, Denmark on December  30.

The Pentland Firth  is a channel between the north tip of Scotland and Orkney that is known for  strong tides and requires careful planning to sail, according to Sail North  Scotland.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2895524/Ship-overturned-coa...

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.voanews.com/content/reu-one-dead-dozens-missing-after-s-...

South Korean Ship Sinks in Bering Sea; 52 Missing

VOA News

Last updated on: December 01, 2014 5:17 PM

A search-and-rescue mission continues for a South Korean fishing vessel that sank early Monday in the Bering Sea off Russia's far-eastern Chukotka region, officials said.

The Oriong-501 had a crew of 60 people. Eight crew members were pulled out of the water, including one who subsequently died, said Artur Rets, head of the maritime rescue service in Russia's port of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Another 52 people are missing.

Officials said the ship began to list after taking on water in rough seas, forcing the crew to abandon it.

"When the fish were being hauled in, the vessel was hit by a wave," Rets said, adding that the ship sank at 0530 GMT.

The mission has been hampered by bad weather, with high winds and pounding waves.

The first rescuers did not arrive until more than three hours after the ship first experienced problems. Of the seven rescued, four were on a life raft together, and the rest were holding onto floating debris.

The South Korean fisheries ministry said the 36-year-old vessel, operated by Sajo Industries, had a crew including 35 Indonesians, 13 Philippine nationals, 11 South Koreans and one Russian inspector. None of the seven rescued was Korean.