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"Best Worst Laid Plans?"

On The Scene At The Port of Antwerp

Feature Date: March 11 2007

Event Date: March 8 2007

Countryman & McDaniel

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"Overlooking Runway 25 - Right, at Los Angeles International Airport"

On The Scene -- At The Port of Antwerp

 A 2007 Countryman & McDaniel

Cargo Nightmare Prize Contender

Readers Note: This Feature Has Now Moved Forward To 2 Pages:

Page 1 M/V Republica di Genoa - Initial Reports & New Aerial Photos

Page 2 M/V Republica di Genoa - Live -0535 hrs. 8 March 2007 - Absolutely Astounding Photos

April 2 2007 Update Posted

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Other Great Disasters of our Time

The Cargo Letter Photo Gallery of Transport Loss

"Ship-To-Shore-Onto Ship" - Nov. 2007

"Den Den Done" - M/V Denden - Sept. 2007

"For The "L" of It" - M/V Action Alpha - August 2007

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"Riding Down The Marquis" - M/V Rickmars Dalian - June 2007

Carrying Coal To Newcastle" - M/V Pasha Bulker - June 2007

"Between A Yacht & A Hard Place" M/V Madame Butterfly - May 2007

"Operation Jumbo Drop" - M/V Jumbo Challenger - March 2007

"Crack'n On The Sidmouth" - M/V MSC Napoli - Jan. 2007

"Wrong Way Agulhas?" - M/V Safmarine Agulhas - Jan. 2007

"Hook, Line & Sink Her!" - A Cargo Law Mystery

"Mighty Sinking" - M/v Mighty Servant 3 - Dec. 2006

"Full Speed Ahead" - M/V Alva Star - Nov. 2006

"Where The Trade Winds Blew" - Oct. 2006

"Full Speed Ahead!" - M/V Alva Star - Nov. 2006

"Maersk Montevideo Melee!" - M/V Leda Maersk - Oct. 2006

"Laying Down On The Job" - M/V Cougar Ace -- Aug. 2006 -- Amazing !

"Vine Ripened Tires" - M/V Saga Spray -- May 2006 -- Amazing !

"Mis-Fortune" - M/V Hyundai Fortune - March 2006

"Scheldt Snafu!" - M/V Grande Nigeria - Feb. 2006

"A Day A The Beach - M/V APL Panama - Jan. 2006

"NO Rails" - destruction of New Orleans - Dec. 2005

"Backhaul !" - for July 2005

"The Boeing Tri-Motor" - for April 2005

"Catch of The Day" - for March 2005

"One Brick Short of A Runway" - for Jan. 2005

M/T Vicuna Explodes - for Jan. 2005

"Unstacked" - overboard & Dr. Beach - Nov. 2004

"Coal Face" - the cargo was danger - July 2004

"Super Loss" - March 2004

"On A Wing & A Prayer" - Jan. 2004

"Stepping In It" - Dec. 2003

"Angel Fire" - Nov. 2003

"Broken Spirit" - M/V Tasman Spirit - Aug. 2003

"Singles Only" -- Our One Photo Disasters

"Columbia River Round Up" - June 2003

"Denise & Polargo" - a love story - July 2003

"Keel Hualed" - M/V Hual Europe - May 2003

"Thrice Bitten" -- M/V Tricolor - Jan. 2003

"Ramp-Age" - Feb. 2003

"Piñata" - breaking the box - Jan. 2003

"Halifax Hash"--M/V Maersk Carolina - Jan. 2003

"Thar She Blows!" - M/V Hanjin Pennsylvania - Nov. 2002

"T-E-U Bar-Be-Cue" - aftermath of the Pennsylvania

"Container Pool" - a mystery - May 2002

"Strangers On My Flight" -- by Frank Sinatra - don't blame us - we only report this stuff!

"Dropping In On The Trucker" - it happened again - April 2002

"UNDER Achiever" - tell your friends ! - March 2002

Tell It To The U.S. Marines! - A Symbol of Our Day of Infamy - Sept. 11

Heavy Metal - lifting the un-liftable object - Disaster at Monrovia July 2001

Rail Mate -- an Egyptian rail loss - Tragedy At Ain Sokhna July 2001

Meals: Ready To Explode - Navy container barbecue at Guam! June 2001

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Attack On USS Cole (DDG-67) - - Dramatic Photos!

M/V OOCL America - Feb. 2000

M/V APL China - world's greatest container disaster - Nov. 1998

M/V New Carissa - the ship that would not die - 1999

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Hanjin's Bad Stab - Under The Dock At Pusan, Korea - Exclusive Photo!

The Cargo Letter Photo Gallery of Transport Loss

 

"Best Worst Laid Plans?"

On The Scene

At The Port of Antwerp

Belgium

M/V Republica di Genoa

A Cargo Nightmare Prize Contender

The Date: March 8

The Time: 0535 hrs.

The Place: The Port of Antwerp, Belgium

 

M/V Republica di Genoa In Better Days

Vessel Name - M/V Republica di Genova

Sisters

M/V Republica di Amalafi (built 1989)

M/V Republica di Roma (built 1992)

Type of Vessel - Combination Container & Ro/Ro

Classification: 100A1-1 NAV.IL MN-TR (Ro-Ro) CONT. IAQ1

Built: Nov. 1988

Builder -Fincantieri C. Mare (NA) Italy

Flag -Italy

Owner -Grimali Line

Crew: 37

Hull - Single Hull

Overall Length - 206 meters

Width - meters

Displacement - D.W.T - 24,000 tons

Gross ITC Tonnage -51,925 tons

Capacity Cars: 3,400 cars/556 trailers

Containers: 1,699 TEU

Maine Engine 12,720 HP,

Speed: 18,5 knots

The Prolog To Disaster -- Operations At The Port of Atwerp
 

PROLOG >> In 2006 We All Spent Some Time With M/V Cargo Ace, In Study of How Fluid Transfer Within A Vessel Can Effect Her Stability.

Now In 2007 A Second Cause of Instability May Be Seen. A Potential Cause of Difficulty For M/V Republica di Genoa Was A Bad Load Plan --

-- Or Container Weights Misdeclared By Shippers. Container Weights & Overall Vessel Balance Are Critcal To Ship Stability.

The importance Declaring Correct Container Weight Cannot Be Overly Stressed.

We Don't Know About Antwerp, But Containers Are Not Actually Weighed At All World Terminals. They Just Red The Bill of Lading.

Still, Word To The Cargo Letter Is That Bukering Could Have Been The Problem -- Like M/V Cargo Ace -- Fluids Placed Into The Wrong Tanks & Endangering Stability.

Eyewitness Accounts (see below) Tell Us That This Incident Began Just As Bunkering Concluded at About 0530 Hrs.

Having Experienced This Type of Situation In Person, We Are Impressed By The Opportunity/Potential For Mischief Which Berthed or Even Vessels Underway Have For Such Incidents By Intention.

Michael S. McDaniel - Your Editor

Thursday Morning March 8 -- At Port of Antwerp

There Appears To Be In Significant Difficulty Here --A Container Stack Collapse.

The Container Have Tumbbled Off M/V Republica di Genoa

These Containers From M/V Republica di Genoa Have Touched Water

The Silver Nitrate Test Will Be Positive.

.......Some Unlucky Containers Took The Deep Six!

The Container Stack Collapse From M/V Republica di Genoa Was Massive!

Here Is A View Inside The Fallen Container Stack of M/V Republica di Genoa

Sadly, Doritos Snack Chips Have Been Connected With Several Recent of These Recent Losses. 

The M/V Courtney L Mystery

The Container Stack Collapse From M/V Republica di Genoa Has Caused Quite A mess ..... But ........

But Things Are Not Always As They Appear!

This Was More Than A Container Stack Collapse

M/V Republica di Genoa Has Capsized At Antwerp!

From Our Reader -
M/V Republica di Genoa capsized during loading March 8 in Belgian port city Antwerp. No injuries were reported. The cause of the capsizing of M/V Republica di Genoa, a roll on/roll off vessel of the London-based Grimaldi Lines, was not immediately clear. Port of Antwerp Captain Jan Persi said the 215-meter-long (705-foot-long) vessel slowly rolled onto her starboard side in a dead end dock early in the morning. He said the ship began taking on water and that the Capt. ordered his crew to evacuate. The white & yellow vessel lay resting on its side, part of her hull above the waterline in the dock. Karel Verbeke, head of Grimaldi Belgium said about 300 containers & cars were on board when the ship rolled over. Shipping in & out of the Verrebroek dock was halted.

M/V Republica di Genoa -- Pushing Trucks & Containers Onto Pier

From The Cargo Letter - March 8 2007 -- Container Vessel In Jeopardy
25,350dwt. Italian container M/V Republica Di Genoa of Grimaldi Lines rolled onto her starboard side in a dead end dock at Port of Antwrp. Capt. ordered crew to evacuate when vessel started to take on water. The 216 meter vessel has a capacity for 3,666 vehicles & 1,015 TEUs. M/V Republica Di Genoa reported to have about 300 containers & cars on board (looks liike more to us) when the ship rolled over, with several going overboard. Incident caused shipping in & out of the Verrebroekdock to be halted, but not on the Scheldt River that links Antwerp to the North Sea. in Genova capsized morning of Mar 8 in the port of Antwerp in the Verrebroekdock. (Thurs. Mar. 8 2007) UPDATE>> We have amazing photos of this loss and will post shortly. McD

Part of Her Hull Above The Waterline M/V Republica di Genoa Hangs On

From The Cargo Letter - March 9 2007 -- Container Vessel In Jeopardy
M/V Republica di Genoa --UPDATE>> Half under water on her starboard side in the Verrebroek Dock in the Waslandharbor in Antwerp. Containers were floating in the wter between the wreck which is listing 90 degrees, and the quay of the dead end dock. Trucks had crashed into the water, as well as about 100 of the 20-ft-containers. On the whole, the ship had loaded 300 of them bound for Luanda, Angola. The crew of 34 & 9 passengers from Romania & Italy had reached land safely as the captain ordered the evacuation as soon as the situation worsened. The ship had started to list in the evening of Mar 7. It had just finished loading in Verrebroek dock when containers on the vessel slipped. All possible corrections to the listing were carried out according to the standard procedures, however for yet unknown reasons the result of the correction were invain and the ship could not be corrected anymore, which suggest a malfunction in the self healing mechanism, however this is only a speculation. The real cause will be detected in due course as soon as the ship will be righted. On Mar 8 at 6.30 a.m. the ship finally capsized. The ship will be salvaged & repaired and will sail again as soon as possible, it was said. Port traffic in the dock has been stopped, but the authorities would be working hard to normalize the situation. The traffic on the Scheldt which connects Antwerp with the Northe Sea was not affected. The 42,567 grt ship was built in 1988 by Fincantieri-Cantieri for the London-based Grimaldi Lines. Grimaldi Group vessels carry containers & Fiat cars from Italy to Antwerp. The ship is homeported in Palermo and has the sister ships M/V Republica di Amalafi (built 1989) & M/V Republica di Roma (built 1992) It was built in 1988 at Fincantieri Cantieri Navali Italiani S.P.A.,Trieste as yard nno. 5837. Length is 216,08 m, breadth 30, 4 m, depth 9,24 m. 42567 ts, 25350 dwt. 12720 HP, 18,5 knots. Capacity: 12 passengers, 3400 cars/556 trailers, 1699 TEU. From our Sr. Correspondent Tim Schwabedissen. (Fri. March 9 2007)

M/V Republica di Genoa In The Horizontal

From Our Reader -
"Cause of the M/V Republica di Genoa incident is unknown -- all crew left vessel before incident. No cargo operations during incident. Bunkering a couple of hours before incident. Master requested urgent tug assistance on March 8th at 05h03LT. At 05h35, the agent who stood on the quaiside watched the ship heeling from port side over starboard, capsizing, slamming with her superstructure & hull onto the concrete of the berth and crunched some objects there (trucks & containers) and slid on her side into the water. Water depth along side Berth #1,337 of the Port of Antwerp is about 14 meters. No victims. According to a local newspaper with "good information" the cause investigation should look into the recent of bunkering of the vessel. However, another source talks about technical problems with the helling & pump systems of M/V Republica di Genoa."
Anonymous Witness

M/V Republica di Genoa Purely & Amazingly Sideways

M/V Republica di Genoa Is One of Grimaldi Group Vessels

Which Carry Containers & Fiat Cars From Italy To Antwerp.

M/V Republica di Genoa - Cargo Depicted Vertically --

-- As If On A Canvas - On The Deck of A Vessel

M/V Republica di Genoa Hard Over At Absolute 90 Degrees

M/V Republica di Genoa - The Wreck The Could Not Happen

M/V Republica di Genoa - 206 Meters of Container Chaos

We Had Another Load Miscalculation Feature:
"Heavy Metal" - July 2001Disaster at Monrovia

 M/V Republica di Genoa In Obvious Distress

She Will Be Righted & Sail Again!

M/V Republica di Genoa Helpless & Sideways At Dock

From The Cargo Letter - March 12 2007 -- More Trouble For Grimaldi

Bad week for Grimaldi - after capsizing of M/V Repubblica di Genova -- also M/V Repubblica di Venecia involved in a collision. In the morning of March 10. The ship was in collision with the bulkcarrier M/V New Venturer 1 in the Northsea Canal between Amsterdam and Ijmuiden. M/V New Venturer 1 suffered serious bow damage, and M/V Repubblica de Venecia a large crack in the hull on one of her upper car decks. Possibly M/V Repubblica di Venecia had suffered engine failure before. From our Sr. Correspondent Tim Schwabedissen. (Mon March 12 2007)

M/V Republica di Genoa - A Real Tumble At Antwerp

From The Cargo Letter - March 15 2007 -- More Trouble For Grimaldi Resolving

Grimaldi car carrier M/V Repubblica di Venecia is currently under repair at Shipdock Shipyard in Amsterdam after its collision with M/V New Venturer 1 between Ijmuiden locks and Amsterdam. She suffered gash of 35mt. length on starboard in one of the upper car decks. M/V New Venture 1 was damaged at the fo`c`sle on starboard site when colliding with the Italian ship in the Noordzee Canal.

M/V Republica di Genoa - The Lesson of Disaster Is That Next Time --

-- It Could Be Human Caused. We Have Long Cautioned Mariners About This Cause of Loss.

Editor Note: We have other new photos for this amazing loss to follow. But for now go to Page 2 -

- we have pictures of M/V Republica di Genoa as she is in the process of capsizing. If there has ever been a commercial for the purchase of marine cargo insurance -- this is it!

McD

Readers Note: This Feature Has Now Moved Forward To 2 Pages:

Page 1 M/V Republica di Genoa - Initial Reports (above)

Page 2 M/V Republica di Genoa - 0535 hrs. 8March 2007 - Live Action Photos of Capsizing Vessel

SEE FEATURES & LINKS - below


Shippers Must Have Quality Marine Cargo Insurance ........ Because......... "Ship Happens! ©"

If We Have Ever Provided A Cautionary Tale In Support of Cargo Insurance -- This Is It!

To Repeat -- No Matter How Careful You Are -- Or Who You Hire ....... "Ship Happens! ©"

 

"Ship Happens! ©"


The Dedication of This Feature Is Simple: To The Crew of M/V Republica di Genoa and her families.

From Our Reader - March 15 2007

"I think that your dedication should have included the passengers, whose trauma might have been worse than that for the experienced crew. Otherwise thanks for excellent coverage of this sad event; I write as a former passenger!"
John Luckie -- Greenbank, Meadow Park Road, DORNOCH, Sutherland, UK

Editor Note:

John makes a good point. Having been in similar but less drastic situations while NOT an experienced crew member -- the worst part as a passenger was not having a job to do & not knowing what to expect. Idle hands & lack of information can be crushing.
McD


SPECIAL NOTE: The historic dangers of carriage by sea continue to be quite real. Shippers must be encouraged to purchase high quality marine cargo insurance from their freight forwarder or customs brokerIt's dangerous out there.


INDEX TO OUR "Best Worst Laid Plans?" PAGE SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Line
Grimaldi Line

Traveling Aboard M/V Republica di Genoa

The Salvors

Not Assigned

Port of Antwerp

Port of Antwerp

Port of Antwerp

Antwerp Harbor

Containers In Antwerp Port

River Entrance

River Scheldt

Our Daily Vessel Casualties - stay informed

Other Ocean Related Features From The Cargo Letter- these are just examples

The Cargo Letter Photo Gallery of Transport Loss - For All The Air & Ocean Features - a few examples below
"Operation Jumbo Drop" - M/V Jumbo Challenger - March 2007

"Crack'n On The Sidmouth" - M/V MSC Napoli - Jan. 2007 - Disaster In Real Time

"Wrong Way Agulhas?" - M/V Safmarine Agulhas - Jan. 2007

"Hook, Line & Sink Her!" - A Cargo Law Mystery

"Full Speed Ahead" - M/V Alva Star - Nov. 2006

"Where The Trade Winds Blew" - Oct. 2006

"Maersk Montevideo Melee!" - M/V Leda Maersk - Oct. 2006

"Laying Down On The Job" - M/V Cargo Ace - Aug. 2006 The Marty Johnson Project Continues

"A Day A The Beach - M/V APL Panama - Jan. 2006

"Great Misfortune"- M/V Hyundai Fortune - March 2006

"Singles Only" - visit our individual moments of transport crisis for more.

The Greatest Container Losses Of All Time - these are the grand fathers -

M/V OOCL America

M/V APL China


SPECIAL NOTE: The historic dangers of carriage by sea continue to be quite real. Shippers must be encouraged to purchase high quality marine cargo insurance from their freight forwarder or customs broker. 

It's very dangerous out there.

Thanks To Our Contributors For The"Best Worst Laid Plans?" Feature

Our Contributors for this feature are:
Anonymous photo contributors (some on scene) who wish to be anonymous*

David C. Heinrich

Heiko Fokkena

Friedrich M.J. Geller

De Plancke Jean-Marie

Henk de Pauw

Lee Thorsen - Vice President, Avalon Risk Management

Lynn Welsh - Export Manager, John S. James Company

Tim Schwabedissen -- our Sr. Cargo Law Correspondent

The Cargo Letter appreciates the continuing efforts of these valued contributors. Thanks Pals!


NOTE: Please Provide Us With Your Additional Information For This Loss.

EDITOR'S NOTE FOR SURVEYORS, ATTORNEYS & MARINE ADJUSTERS: The Internet edition effort of The Cargo Letter now celebrates it's 8th Year of Service -- making us quite senior in this segment of the industry. We once estimated container underway losses at about 1,500 per year. Lloyd's put that figure at about 10,000 earlier this year. Quite obviously, the reporting mechanism for these massive losses is not supported by the lines. News of these events is not posted to the maritime community. Our new project is to call upon you -- those handling the claims -- to let us know of each container loss at sea-- in confidentiality. Many of you survey on behalf of cargo interests with no need for confidentiality. Others work for the lines & need to be protected. As a respected Int'l publication, The Cargo Letter enjoys full press privileges & cannot be forced to disclose our sources of information. No successful attempt has ever been made. If a personal notation for your report is desired -- each contributor will be given a "hot link" to your company Website in each & every report. Please take moment & report your "overside" containers to us. If you do not wish attribution, your entry will be "anonymous." This will will benefit our industry -- for obvious reasons! McD


* NOTE: The Cargo Letter wants you to know that by keeping the identity of our contributors 100% Confidential, you are able to view our continuing series of "Cargo Disasters." Our friends send us materials which benefit the industry. The materials are provided to our news publication with complete and enforceable confidentiality for the sender. In turn, we provide these materials to you.  

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