As many as 50 killed fleeing Sierra Leone

     A motorized canoe sailing from Freetown, Sierra Leone, to Guinea
capsized and sank 11 Feb. in bad weather. More than 100 people were aboard
and as many as 50 were killed. The passengers were recent fighting in
Sierra Leone (see above).

Thirty-one crewmembers missing after bulk carrier sinks

     The Fei Cui Hai (Chinese-registry 18,972-gt, 32,300-dwt bulk carrier
built in 1973, owned by Qingdao Ocean Shipping and operated by COSCO Bulk
Carrier Co. Ltd.) sank the night of 7 Feb. at 09 degrees 31 minutes north,
110 degrees 33 minutes east. The location is in the South China Sea off
southern Vietnam. Thirty-one of the 34 crew are missing. The Fei Cui Hai
was sailing from New Mangalore, India, to Nanjing, China, with 27,499 tons
of iron ore concentrate. The Pioneer Leader (Panamanian-registry 17,859-dwt
ro/ro built in 1980, operated by Eisho Sangyo K.K.) and the Venus Diamond
(Singaporean-registry 14,360-dwt ro/ro built in 1978, operated by NYK Ship
Management (Hong Kong) Ltd.) diverted to search for survivors.

Agan sinking kills four crewmembers

     The Agan (Russian-registry 1,522-gt, 1,650-dwt motor dry cargo ship
built in 1977, operated by Ob-Irtysh River Shipping Co.) has sunk 160
kilometers/100 miles off Ulung Do, South Korea. It was carrying scrap from
Nakhodka, Russia, to Masan, South Korea. Four crewmembers were killed but
others were rescued.

Three killed in liftboat capsizing in Venezuela

     On 1 Feb., the liftboat Homus capsized in Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela.
All three crewmembers (two Venezuelan and one U.S. citizen who was the
master) were killed.

Crew of Vietnamese-registry vessel rescued as ship grounds in Japan

     The Ha Thanh (Vietnamese-registry 1,442-gt, 2,230-dwt general cargo
ship built in 1980, operated by Northern Waterways Transport Corp.) dragged
anchor in bad weather outside Shimonoseki, Japan, on 8 Feb. as it waited to
berth at Kokura. It ran aground at 33 degrees 58.6 minutes north, 130
degrees 54.9 minutes east. The 21 crewmembers were rescued by helicopter.
Flooding of the engine room and cargo holds have been reported as well as
some pollution.

U.S.-registry fishing vessel abandoned after fire

     The Golden Glow (U.S.-registry 959-gt, 61-meter/200-foot fishing
vessel) caught fire 320 kilometers/200 miles south of Tonga on 3 Feb.,
roughly at 22 degrees south, 175 degrees east. The eight crewmembers
abandoned the vessel into a 9.1-meter/30-foot boat. The Hifofua rescued the
eight.

Thirty-three rescued after Hanjin Barcelona hits fishing vessel

     A fishing vessel collided with a containership and sank just after
2300 11 Feb. All 33 crewmembers of the Alaska-1 (198-ton, 59-meter/198-foot
long fishing vessel homeported in Seattle) boarded two liferafts and were
taken aboard the fishing vessel Dominator. The Alaska-1 collided with the
Hanjin Barcelona (Panamanian-registry 62,723-dwt, 300-meter/984-foot
containership built in 1992, operated by Hanjin), 54 kilometers/34 miles
north of Dutch Harbor, Alaska. The fishing vessel had 361,000 liters/95,000
gallons of diesel fuel aboard. The Hanjin Barcelona was sailing from
Oakland, Calif., to Taiwan with 4,000 containers. Weather was clear with
1.8-meter/six-foot seas and winds of 15 to 20 knots. Water depth in the
area is about 850 meters/2,800 feet.

U.S. Navy submarine rescues crew after sinking fishing vessel

     The U.S. Navy's Los Angeles-class Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarine
U.S.S. La Jolla (SSN 701) and a South Korean-registry fishing vessel
collided before dawn 11 Feb., 11 kilometers/6.6 miles off southern South
Korea. The fishing vessel sank and its five crew were rescued by the
submarine, which is part of the Seventh Fleet in Japan. The U.S.S. La Jolla
was sailing to Chinhae, South Korea, for supplies and maintenance.

Engine room of NP Unity flooded

     The NP Unity (Bahamian-registry 2,757-gt, 4,132-dwt liquefied natural
gas carrier built in 1986, operated by Trindad & Tobago Shipping) ran
aground in bad weather at Canefields Mooring off Dominica on 10 Feb. It was
sailing from Antigua with gasoil and jet fuel. The ship's engine room is
reportedly flooded.

Two barges sink after allision with bridge over Mississippi River

     The tug Noble C. Parsonage, pushing 25 barges, hit the I-155 bridge
between Boothspoint, Tenn., and Kinfolk Ridge, Mo., at mile marker 833 on
the Mississippi River on 2 Feb. Twenty-one barges broke free. One barge
flooded at mile marker 837 and was pushed ashore. Another barge sank in 7.9
meters/26 feet of water at mile marker 833. The Mississippi River was
closed to navigation from mile marker 833.5 to 837.5, roughly from
Caruthersville, Mo., to Blytheville, Ark., and reopened with restrictions
on 3 Feb. The bridge sustained only minor damage. The two barges that
flooded were headed to Reserve, La., and the tow included cargoes of coal
and grain.

Ince Express damaged in Pacific storms

     On 29 Jan., the Ince Express suffered heavy structural damage at Wake
Island after four storms. Several fractures were found in the side shell of
the No. 1 cargo hold as well as cracks in several hatch coamings. The No. 1
hold flooded to the waterline.

Offshore support vessel recues crew of fishing vessel

     The Deezemeow (Belgian-registry 200-ton fishing vessel) caught fire 7
Feb. in England's Liverpool Bay. The Grampian Supporter (1,942-dwt offshore
support vessel built in 1976, operated by North Star Shipping (Aberdeen)
Ltd.) rescued the five crewmembers. The Deezemeow was later towed to
Liverpool, England, by the Rowangarth (173-dwt tug built in 1981, operated
by Cory Towage Ltd.).

Tanker grounds in Greece

     The Aegean VI (2,037-ton tanker) ran aground 9 Feb. off Poros Island,
Greece. It has a crew of nine.

C. Osman refloated from Mathraki Island

     The C. Osman ran aground 6 Feb. off Mathraki Island, Greece, northeast
of Corfu. The vessel was refloated by two tugs the night of 8 Feb. after
lightering part of its cargo to another ship. The C. Osman was sailing to
Veka in the former Yugoslavia.

Singa Ace has engine problems

     The Singa Ace (Singaporean-registry 42,575-gt, 18,293-dwt motor ro/ro
built in 1984, operated by Ow Ship Management Pte. Ltd.) arrived at Suez,
Egypt on 8 Feb. with main engine damage. Repairs were done and it left for
Algeria on 11 Feb.

Crew of Amanah being held in Keelung

     Hemat Shipping Sdn. Bhd. has said that the Port of Keelung, Taiwan,
has held one of its ship's crew "hostage" for more than a month. The 17
crewmembers of the Amanah (5,119-dwt bulk carrier built in 1982, operated
by Yamashita Unyu) were rescued by helicopters late 4 Jan. after the ship
ran aground and sank off Keelung. The ship arrived at Keelung 2 Jan. from
Japan and was leaving port when, according to Hemat Shipping, the vessel,
in ballast, encountered heavy weather and the propeller was forced out of
the water, triggering the governor. The crew restarted the main engine but
grounded. About 160 tons of fuel spilled. The Amanah reportedly is in two
sections, one of which is on a rock. The shipowner's protection and
indemnity club, Skuld, and local lawyer Colin Chen have said that the
harbormaster has no legal basis for detaining the crew. Harbormaster J.M.
You said that the crew is being held for interviews. The crew includes
South Korean citizens as officers and Chinese, Indonesian and Malaysian
citizens. The two Chinese crewmembers were allowed to leave Taiwan after
two weeks. Hemat Shipping said that Keelung has pressured it to supply a
guarantee to cover compensation and removal of the ship. Skuld said it has
spent U.S.$400,000 to clean the spill and remove remaining fuel.

Micronesian residents win lawsuit against Greek operator

     Residents of Satawal Island, Micronesia, will receive U.S.$2 million
from the Greek operator of a vessel that ran aground off the island,
destroying a reef that provided the island's primary food source. Most of
the money will be invested on behalf of the 600 residents. Satawal Island
is a low coral island about 1.6 kilometers/one mile in diameter. In 1994,
the Oceanus hit the Wenimong Reef. The ship was carrying 6,080 metric tons
of coal.

Report on Vanessa sinking notes communication, safety equipment problems

     An investigation by the Canadian government into the sinking of the
Vanessa (Bahamian-registry 5,265-dwt, 101-meter/330-foot refrigerated ship
built in 1984, owned by Eidsiva A.S.A. and operated by Wesnav A/S) has
revealed that communication systems aboard the vessel failed. The ship sank
the night of 23 Oct., about 830 kilometers/520 miles east of St. John's,
Newfoundland. Of the crew, 10 were rescued, four were killed and one is
missing. The Vanessa sank after its cargo of ammonium nitrate and calcium
nitrate shifted in bad weather. The ship was sailing from Sweden to
Colombia. The radio operator, who was on the bridge, said he could not get
back to the radio room to hit buttons that send a satellite message as part
of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System. Remote buttons on the
bridge were not installed. The operator used a hand-held radio with a
relatively short range to send a distress message. Also, an Emergency
Position Indicating Radio Beacon floated free from the Vanessa but failed
to activate. It had been inspected in June. A radar reflector one of the
crew brought aboard a liferaft was dropped overboard.

Deaths, vessels lost in 1997 down but tonnage up

     The Institute of London Underwriters announced 10 Feb. that 89 vessels
of 500 gross tons or more were lost last year, compared to 113 in 1996. The
number is expected to rise as vessels are declared total constructive
losses. Tonnage increased from 653,775 gross tons to 739,164 gross tons. In
1997, 263 people were killed in incidents involving vessels over 500 gross
tons compared to 1,150 the year before.