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The Cargo Letter
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Section A: Trade, Financial & Inland News | Section
B: FF World Air News |
Section C: FF World Ocean News | Section
D: FF in Cyberspace |
Section E: The Forwarder Broker World
- Tracking The Proud Voyage of LST-325 ......... as
our continued
coverage of the historic Atlantic crossing of LST-325 (Landing Ship Tank)
follows the voyage from Greece to Mobile, Alabama that is scheduled to end
on
Jan. 10, 2001 when the WWII fighting lady comes home. A veteran of D-Day on
June 4, 1944, and then loaned to the Greek Navy in the 1960's, the 58 year
old warship -- U.S. Navy veteran crew average age 72 -- is battling Atlantic
storms at this hour with a broken generator & an inoperable gyrocompass.
Visit our special Internet feature with daily satellite fixes, crew
interviews, history reviews, photos & muh more. Support the great heroes
of 325! https://cargolaw.com/presentations_lst325.html
- M/V Straights Peace Turns Back ......... as
the 1st Taiwan vessel
permitted to sail directly to rival China in more than 50 years was forced
to
turn back on New Years Day (still Dec. 31 for this publication in Los
Angeles), beset by heavy seas & mainland red tape. The vessel ferrying
more
than 50 tourism industry businesspeople from the Taiwan-held frontier island
of Quemoy to the southeastern Chinese city of Xiamen turned back after
sailing for about 15 minutes, passengers said. "The waves are too big,
we are
on our way back. The boat is rocking stronger and stronger," said one
of the
passengers on the 20-ton vessel. Some of the passengers are reporters &
the
mainland will not agree to let them land," the passenger added. Some
people
on the vessel have been in contact with mainland officials via mobile
phones.
The vessel would have been the 1st to take advantage of the Taiwan cabinet's
decision last month to permit direct travel between the heavily fortified
frontier islands of Quemoy & Matsu.
- Return of The Q-ship? .......... as
the general secretary of the
Liberian Shipowners' Council has proposed the use of so-called 'Q ships',
armed merchant vessels disguised as ordinary cargo ships, to combat piracy
in
South East Asia. Writing in the latest LSC Information Bulletin, Richard
Deely said: "The ability to attract & destroy pirates should
provide a
healthy disincentive." He said that the move might help combat the
activities
of rogue elements of local armed forces. Chinese & Indonesian naval
units
stand accused of participation & responsibility for the accelerated
growth of
piracy and heightened levels of violence including wholesale murder of
ships'
crews.
Q-ships were used in both world wars to combat submarines.
- Pirate Warning .......... as
on Dec. 31 the Int'l Maritime Bureau
announced that ships plying the Straits of Malacca have been alerted to be
vigilant following an upsurge in piracy. IMB's Piracy Reporting Center in
Kuala Lumpur said pirate attacks have been recorded in the Malacca Straits
between the co-ordinates 01 to 02N-101 to 103E. The most risky area is
within 25nm radius surrounding 02N-102E, where pirates are active. The
center said ships calling at Davao in the Philippines have also reported men
firing
rocket-propelled grenades at ships from banca (small canoe with outriggers).
In the past 4 weeks, four ships have been attacked this way. Attacks against
ships have been reported at Chittagong, Mongla and Chennai while they were
at anchor. Ships calling at the Indonesian ports of Belawan, Dumai, Jakarta,
Merak, Samarinda and Tanjong Priok have reported numerous pirate attacks
whilst at berth & at anchor. The center said persons in small fast boats
have
been trying to board several ships off Bab Al Mandeb in the southern tip of
the Red Sea, around 13N-43E. Masters said small boats wait at the northern
end of traffic lane where ships slow down to make a turn. Somalian waters
also continue to be a risk-prone area for hijackings. Ships should keep at
least 50 miles and if possible 100 miles from the Somali coast. The center
has advised that the use of radio communications including VHF transmissions
in these waters should be kept to a minimum.
- Pirates In Your Port .......... as
the Int'l Maritime Organization is expected to finalize a code next week
that will help countries to investigate all types of attacks against cargo
ships & to better enable them to prosecute criminals involved in these
violent acts. While the IMO has used the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of
the Sea definition of piracy, the London-based maritime group has lacked an
"approved" definition to cover other types of attacks against
ships. Industry officials from groups such as the Baltic & Int'l
Maritime Council and the Int'l Maritime Bureau have also been concerned
about the lack of broad Int'l regulations to address attacks against vessels
other than on the high seas. It's estimated that 80& of all pirate
attacks against vessels occur in ports while at anchor or berths. However,
many countries have failed to recognize attacks in their ports because of
the potential for bad publicity. While retaining the UNCLOS definition of
piracy, the IMO's Maritime Safety Committee, which includes 160 countries
& industry organizations, attached a definition of armed robbery against
ships.
See: Database of Daily Vessel Loss & Pirate Attacks.
https://cargolaw.com/presentations_casualties.html
- FMC Swoops ........
as
81 ocean transportation intermediaries face the possibility of losing their
licenses to operate in the U.S. foreign trades for failing to post increased
bonds required by the Ocean Shipping Reform Act. The FMC has cited 20
freight forwarders for failing to increase their proof of financial
responsibility from US$30,000 to US$50,000, plus US$10,000 for each
unincorporated branch office. The commission also cited 53
non-vessel-operating common carriers for failing to increase the bonds from
US$50,000 to US$75,000, plus US$10,000 for each unincorporated branch
office. An additional 7 firms operating as both forwarders & NVOs were
cited by the FMC for failing to meet both forwarding & NVO bonding
requirements. One non-U.S. based NVO was cited by the FMC for failing to
increase its bond from US$50,000 to US$150,000 & for failing to indicate
the location of its electronically published tariff. None of the firms have
been issued new licenses by the FMC. Firms
which want an FMC hearing must make such a request to the agency by Feb. 12.
The parties were asked to file papers explaining why the FMC should not
revoke their licenses for failing to comply with the new OSRA bonding
requirements. A final FMC ruling will be handed down by August 13.
- More To Fear Than FMC ........ as
executives of a New Jersey NVOCC were arrested late last month by U.S.
federal agents on charges of defrauding the U.S. Dept. of Defense of
millions of dollars. Anil V. Rane, president of the Great Eastern Shipping
Inc. & the firm's V.P., Maria E. Fabros, were arrested on charges that
they sent inflated payment vouchers to the Dept. of Defense. Bail was set at
US$100,000 with confinement to their homes under electronic monitoring.
According to the criminal complaint they allegedly submitted falsified
documents to the U.S. Army & Military Traffic Management Command (MTMC)
to inflate their claims for payment for performing contracts for ocean
freight service & to conceal the fact that they used foreign flagged
vessels instead of U.S.-flagged vessels, contrary to law. The Defense
Criminal Investigative Service said that the Great Eastern has had a number
of spot contracts, called one-time-only contracts, with government agencies
for ocean transport of equipment and that since July 1998, Great Eastern has
been awarded more than 350 one-time-only contracts for which it was paid
more than US$9M. Sworn affidavits state that review MTMC contract files for
5 of these contracts revealed that claims submitted by Great Easternfar
exceeded the contract amounts. "As a result of these fraudulent
claims," it was stated, "the MTMC paid Great Eastern approximately
US$5.2M on 100 one-time-only contracts, of which, at least approximately
US$3.9M was fraudulent." Both Rane, who is a naturalized citizen from
India, & Fabros, a resident alien from the Philippines, were ordered to
surrender their passports.
- Going Retail ......... as 9
of the world's leading ocean carriers are
joining forces with Tradiant, a Silicon Valley tech company, in an
unprecedented partnership that will enable importers & exporters
worldwide to
greatly simplify the process of containerized transportation.
The multimillion dollar partnership to launch a new Internet initiative
(currently code-named Global Transportation Network or GTN) in early 2001.
This is a totally neutral technology platform that will facilitate
transactions between the various parties involved in Int'l trade. Carriers
involved in the partnership include: APL; CP Ships, ANZDL, Canada Maritime,
Cast, Contship Containerlines, Lykes Lines, TMM Lines; Hanjin; Hyundai; K
Line; Mitsui OSK Lines; Senator Lines; Yang Ming; 7 Zim Israel Navigation
Company. Negotiations are currently underway with other transportation
providers that also may join as founding
partners.
- The Envelope Please .......... as
French carrier CMA CGM has been voted
as `Company of the Year' by Containerization Int'l, while APL has topped the
Journal of Commerce (JoC) Group's outstanding container carrier award
charts.
This is the 1st time British magazine Containerization Int'l chose a French
company to receive its top accolade. The decision was reached through a
combination of factors, most notably: CMA CGM's launch & extension of
services; and financial performance, showing a rise of 44% in net results
for
the 1st half of fiscal 2000. The publication placed Maersk Sealand &
Hapag
Lloyd in the runner up positions. Meanwhile, APL, the container transport
unit of Neptune Orient Line, was given an outstanding container carrier
award
by JoC at an event held in New York. The company's widespread use of
information technology is what clinched the prize, allowing APL to provide a
more efficient service & one that is implemented smoothly.
- Christmas In A Can .......... as
a 36 ft. (12 meter) Christmas tree,
weighing 800 kilos arrived in Hong Kong by container as a gift from the
Mayor
of Vienna, Dr Michael Haupl, for the Eurochristmas festivities at the
Convention & Exhibition Center. It was shipped to Hong Kong by the
Panalpina
Group, which sponsored the complete operation. The spruce, kept at a
constant
temperature of 6 degrees Celsius, was transported from the Valley of
Hollental to the Port of Hamburg, where it was placed on board an ocean
carrier which carried the gift to Hong Kong.
- MOL Looses Alligator ......... as
all future containerships of Mitsui
O.S.K. Lines will be prefixed by the word `MOL.' Additionally, all new
vessels will display the company logo on their hulls.MOL says that the name
change is a move towards establishing greater consistency in ship names
& to
raise the profile of the MOL brand name. Containerships currently in service
will have the word `MOL' added to the beginning of their name. The 1st
vessel
to be named is the 1,032-TEU M/V MOL Harmony, which was delivered on Dec. 20
to serve the Japan-Thailand route. Of existing containerships, the 1st
vessel
to be renamed was the M/V MOL Thames, formerly the Thames, which transferred
from the Asia-Europe service to the Asia-US east coast-Europe pendulum
service, followed by M/V MOL Columbus, formerly the M/V Alligator Columbus,
which serves the transpacific route. Up until now, containerships on
transpacific routes have had the prefix `Alligator,' and those plying the
Asia-Europe route were named after major European rivers. The first of these
to be renamed is the M/V MOL Mosel, which received its new name and livery
in
Tokyo on Dec. 22. Ships serving north-south trades will either have `MOL'
added to their names, or be renamed taking into consideration the routes and
ports they use.
- Expect Giants .......... as
Korean carrier Hyundai Merchant Marine said
it plans to put five 8,000-TEU containerships on the transpacific route
between 2006 & 2010. P&O Nedlloyd confirmed recently that it is
considering
building ships of up to 10,000 TEUs. Maersk Sealand operates
"S-class"
containerships, officially rated with a 6,600-TEU capacity, that are
believed
to be able to carry at least 7,100 TEUs.
- Cool Deal ......... as
Danish shipping company J. Lauritzen has bought
Leif Hoegh reefer subsidiary Cool Carriers, which also includes Arctic
Reefers, for US$35.4M to form the world's largest reefer operator at 90
ships. The two operations were a part of what was then the world's largest
independent reefer company Unicool until it was bought by Hoegh at the start
of the year. None of the 15 vessels in which Unicool still has an owning
interest are part of the deal, although they will remain in the existing
pool
arrangements with Lauritzen. Even if the reefer markets are at a historical
low point the new reefer operation is positioned to take advantage of the
expected improvements in the market place.
- CP Ships Going Fast ............ as
the UK-based container shipping
business of Canada's transport conglomerate Canadian Pacific, is to handle
the commercial & marketing management for the revolutionary high speed
transatlantic service to be operated by U.S. based FastShip. CP Ships is
also
taking a "small equity position." The liner firm is to set up a
FastShip
management team to run sales, customer service & manage the necessary
inland
transportation network between FastShip's dedicated terminal in Cherbourg,
France & the rest of Europe. CP will also manage the container &
chassis
fleet & allow for pooling opportunities between the two companies.
FastShip
says it will target high value, time sensitive goods including electronics,
apparel & perishable items when its four 38 knot, 1,432 TEU vessels
enter
service in 2004.
- Dangerous Goods Code - Dangerous .......... as
the UK-based mutual P&I
insurer, the London Club has warned that the latest revision of the Int'l
Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) code contains a large number of errors, some
of them potentially dangerous. The latest version of the code comes into
force on Jan. 1 & the transition period for using either version ends a
year
later. So far, two sets of corrections have been issued, including those for
errors in segregation requirements. In the latest issue of its London Club
News, the Club said: Other identified errors in the code, not yet corrected,
include references to discontinued flammable liquid subdivisions, &
contradictions in labeling instructions. One medical view is that some of
the treatments indicated are outdated, & may even be dangerous. The new
code will have to be used with care until comprehensive amendments are
available to address errors, & a competent authority has confirmed that
the code's revisions are satisfactory.
- Mining Friendship..........
as the heavily fortified Taiwan-held island of Quemoy, off arch-rival
China's southeastern coast, is to invite bids in Jan. for the clearance of
land mines to make way for a commercial port after opening up to Chinese
visitors & trade. The explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) operation is
designed to complement a plan by Taiwan to ease a decades-old ban on trade
& transport links between its front-line islands and China's Fujian
province from 2001 despite simmering political tensions. The Quemoy county
government would invite bids next month for the clearance of about 8,500 sq.
meters (91,500 sq. feet) of contaminated land. The winner will have 200 days
to clear the area, after which a commercial port would be built at a cost of
US$136.4M.
- No Bulk At P&O..........
as the UK shipping firm, having already quit the cruise line business that
made it famous, is selling its bulk carrier division of 14 vessels to an
Israeli firm. Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation group is selling
Associated Bulk Carriers (ABC) to the unlisted firm "Zodiac" on
undisclosed terms after a long hunt for a buyer.
- But P&O
Still Boxing ........ as it has placed US$130M worth of new
orders for general purpose and reefer containers which will replace older
equipment & expiring leases. An order for a total of 59,000 TEU of
general purpose containers consisting of a mixture of 20 foot, 40 foot &
40 foot HC containers has been placed with China Int'l Marine Containers
Group Hong Kong, Jindo Corporation Korea & Hyundai Mobis Korea. The
company plans to invest in 3,000 forty-foot high-cube reefers next year,
almost double the investment of this year.
- China Still Growing.........
as its largest & fastest container ship, capable of carrying more than
5,500 TEU of containers & with a sailing speed of 25.9 knots, has joined
the China Shipping Group (CSG) on its U.S.-bound services. The giant was
christened M/V CSCL Shanghai on Dec. 3 by Chen Tiedi director of the
Standing Committee of the Shanghai People's Congress. Beginning its
operations in 1997 with only 12 ships & a total capacity of 1,000-TEU,
CSG has now developed into one of the major container carriers in China. It
now has a fleet of 103 ships, with a total box capacity of 120, 000 TEU. The
company has ordered 39 more container ships.
- Up Down Under.........
as Member lines of the U.S. - Australia Agreement will increase rates
& introduce a chassis usage charge. Effective Jan. 1, the rate increases
will be on 1.] Forest products, synthetic resin & diatamaceous earth,
US$120 per TEU & US$200 per FEU; 2.] Freight consolidated container,
US$290 per TEU & US$480 per FEU; and 3.] All other commodities will
increase by US$210 per TEU & US$350 per FEU. The USAA will also
implement a chassis usage charge of US$40 per CTNR for export cargo. The
surcharge is to address equipment issues & cost associated with
providing the chassis, the conference said. The fee covers the chassis use
for standard free time periods, after which the existing per diems would
apply. Members of USAA are Australia New Zealand Direct Line, CMA CGM,
Columbus Line, Contship Container Lines, P&O Nedlloyd & Wallenius
Wilhelmsen Lines.
- Up Hill To Hawaii........ as Matson Navigation Company has filed
with the Surface Transportation Board for a 3.5% rate increase in its U.S.
Pacific Coast - Hawaii Service, effective from Feb. 14, 2001.
- CMA CGM Drops One........ as the French carrier left the Westbound
Transpacific Stabilization Agreement on Dec. 16. The agreement is a carrier
group that discusses issues in the westbound transpacific trade and adopts
non-binding recommendations on price levels. A spokesman for CMA CGM said
that its low market share in the westbound trade did not justify
participating in the agreement. Following the departure of CMA CGM, the
Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement will have 13 member carriers:
APL, China Ocean Shipping Co., Evergreen, Hanjin Shipping, Hapag-Lloyd,
Hyundai Merchant Marine, "K" Line, Maersk Sealand, Mitsui O.S.K.
Lines, NYK, OOCL, P&O Nedlloyd & Yangming Marine. CMA CGM will
remain a member of the eastbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement, a
carrier group that is seen as more influential in the transpacific liner
trade.
- Drop One, Add One......... as the U.S. Atlantic & Gulf
Ports/Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa Freight Conference will be
terminated in Jan. The small conference, whose member carriers have been
P&O Nedlloyd, Turkon Line & Waterman Steamship Co., is the latest
conference to disappear following the enactment of the U.S. Ocean Shipping
Reform Act of 1999. This development follows the formation of the new
Eastern Mediterranean Discussion Agreement which is currently pending
approval from the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission. The expected member
carriers of the Eastern discussion agreement are China Ocean Shipping Co.,
Maersk Sealand, Mediterranean Shipping Co., P&O Nedlloyd, Turkon &
Zim Israel Navigation.
- SafName....... as SafBank Line, the liner operator in the North
America/southern Africa & North America/Australasia trades, will be
renamed Safmarine on Jan. 1. The change in the brand name of the service
follows Safmarine Container Lines' recent full takeover of SafBank.
Safmarine said the change of name is in line with its move to a single
global brand.
- Los Angeles Less Free......... as the port has adopted a temporary
order to amend the Port tariff item that limits free time allowed on
inbound, outbound & transshipped containerized cargo in intercoastal,
offshore & foreign trades. Item 720 of Port of Los Angeles Tariff No. 4,
which currently allows 7 days of free time for containerized imports &
10 days for containerized exports, will be revised to permit 5 days of free
time on inbound cargo & 7 days on outbound cargo. The reduction in free
time will encourage even greater efficiency in the land-transportation of
containerized freight that is delivered to cargo terminals at the Port. Free
time for break-bulk cargo will remain at 7 days for inbound cargo & 10
days for outbound cargo.
- There's Celebrating At Interpool......... as the company has
announced that it will pay a cash dividend of US.75 cents per share for the
4th quarter of 2000. The dividend will be payable on Jan. 15, 2001 to
shareholders of record on January 2, 2001. The aggregate amount of the
dividend is expected to be an impressive US$1,034,000.00. The amount of the
quarterly dividend is based on a 2000 annualized dividend rate of 15 cents
per share. Interpool, originally founded in 1968, is one of the world's
leading suppliers of equipment & services to the transportation
industry. It is the largest lessor of intermodal container chassis in the
United States and a world-leading lessor of cargo containers used in Int'l
trade. Interpool leases its containers & chassis to over 500 customers
around the world. Interpool is corporate sponsor of The Cargo Letter
archives & news Internet page. Indeed, The Cargo Letter salutes
Webmaster Ed Graham for his fine work on our news archive in Year
2000!http://www.interpool.com/tcl/
- Chassis Charge Wave Continues........ as Cho Yang Shipping, a
non-conference carrier in the transatlantic trade, has followed the lead of
the Trans-Atlantic Conference Agreement by announcing the introduction of a
chassis usage charge in the U.S., effective Jan. 1. The extra charge will be
US$40 per chassis for the eastbound trade & US$60 for the westbound
trade. Cho Yang's chassis charges are the same as those of the TACA
conference. Cho Yang said the chassis charge applies to all shipments for
which the line provides the chassis, regardless of whether the shipment
moves under merchant's or carrier's haulage in the U.S.
- Shipping Snow.......... as entrepreneur Luis Guzman shipped 300
tons of snow from Quebec to San Juan with plans to charge families US$30
each to build snowmen & wage snowball fights in a refrigerated event
hall. Guzman spent US$200,000 to import the snow from Fermont, Quebec.
Residents of Fermont - population 3,500 - say they're baffled. "I can't
believe somebody would want our snow," said Mayor Robin Belanger. But
in the former Spanish colony turned U.S. territory, Santa Claus is
challenging the traditional Three Kings in popularity. And with Puerto
Ricans paying US$70 for U.S.-style fir Christmas trees imported from Canada,
Guzman thinks people will pay for a bit of white Christmas. In Fermont,
workers used snow blowers to fill freezer trucks which hauled the snow 1,100
miles to a port in St. John, New Brunswick. Ships carried the snow 2,000
miles south to Puerto Rico in reefer containers. The 1st ship unloaded in
San Juan last week. Pettipas said he picked Fermont because he figured it
was guaranteed to have snow by now. Temperatures there hit 15 degrees this
week. In Puerto Rico, at a humid 88 degrees F, workers prepared a "snow
house." If it's successful, the Canadians say half in jest, the Great
White North might have a new export. Said Kent Lines Shipping, which is
handling the cargo: "Everybody here is wondering, `Is there a business
in this?"
- Master Jailed......... as the captain & 3 crew of the Greek
ro-ro ferry M/V Nicolas A have been handed a 4 year jail term and fines of
US$930 each having been found guilty of attempting to smuggle ten illegal
immigrants into Italy. The men were charged after police raided the Sea
Malta-operated ship in the Greek port of Patras, from where it was bound for
Ancona. The stowaways were in a hidden compartment.
- Amazing Tale of The Sea........... as the final journey of Spanish
flagged F/V Zorre Zaure on to the seabed in Bantry Bay, Ireland, is one that
will be a source of wonder for some time to come. Several weeks ago, the
fishing vessel Zorre Zaure, which was believed to have sunk 140 miles off
the southwest UK coast, was located by the Naval Service near rocks where
its sister ship foundered almost 10 years ago. That the Zorre Zaure should
have traveled 140 miles into the coastline without detection or collision
with another vessel is extraordinary enough. Valentia Coast Guard had
assumed it had sunk when it received no reports of its whereabouts
immediately after the RAF rescued the 13 crew on Nov. 30. But that it should
travel semi-submerged, gear attached, for 140 miles & then hit a bank so
close to the F/V Nuestra Senora de Gardotza is - to quote the cliche -
"stranger than strange". The sister vessel was lost on rocks close
to Roancarrig lighthouse on Jan. 30, 1990. Its crew were evacuated, but Able
Seaman Michael Quinn lost his life while trying to assist in the rescue.
- Throughput........... The Canadian port of Halifax expects to top
500,000 TEUs for the 1st time during 2000 & projects a yearly traffic
volume of 560,000 TEUs, representing a 21% increase on 1999. >>>
Hong Kong's year-to-date throughput at 10,139,000 TEU, puts the territory on
course for yet another record year. >>> Port of Long Beach saw the
peak holiday season extend into Nov. & 4.25 million TEUs for 11 months,
up 5.1%. >>> The Port of Los Angeles container volumes through the
1st 11 months of 2000 are nearly 1 million TEUs ahead of 1999, with a total
of 4.49 million TEUs, which is 29% ahead of the year-earlier period.
>>> Throughput for Shanghai Port for the 1st 11 months of this year
hit 5.01 million TEU, up 30% year-on-year, with the full year volume
expected to hit 5.55 million TEU. At noon on Nov. 27, container volume
handled by Shanghai Port reached 5 million TEU, making the facility the 1st
in China to break through the psychologically important 5 million TEU-mark.
Shanghai Port now ranks 3rd in the world.
- This Month In U.S. Naval History......... as on Dec. 14, 1944, the
rank of "Fleet Admiral" is created. A day later, the 5 star rank
is conferred upon Admirals William D. Leahy, chairman, joint chiefs of
staff; Ernest J. King, chief of naval operations & Chester W. Nimitz,
commander of the Pacific Fleet. The 4th, William F. Halsey, commander of the
3rd Fleet, was promoted after World War II. The five star rank was never
again bestowed.
Visit our new Vessel
Casualties & Pirate Activity Database ......... where daily updates of
these ship news are posted. Stay up to date!
We're sorry, but there were so many sinkings, explosions, pirate attacks,
fires, cargo mishaps, artillery battles on the water & other disasters at
sea that we do not have room to print even the highlights this month. Many lost
their lives at sea this month!!
But you can read all this month's disasters at our special Internet web
feature which provides full details of each event. This month we also include
special coverage of the great tragedy for USS Cole (DDG 67) including dramatic
new pictures just posted & coverage of the 800-foot M/T Westchester which
lost power Nov. 28 evening & ran aground about 60 miles south of New
Orleans, spilling 546,000 gallons of crude oil & closing traffic to a
26-mile stretch of the Mississippi River today.
SPECIAL NOTE: The Cargo Letter has received new U.S. Navy photos of USS Cole
disaster. Please view these dramatic pictures at our special "Gallery
of Cargo Loss" website feature.
Our Daily Vessel Casualties & Pirate Activity Database is updated for you
twice daily! You can also search ship wrecks & losses of the past in our
extensive index.
Bookmark the site and visit every day! Thousands of visitors can't be wrong! https://cargolaw.com/presentations_casualties.html
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 dangerous out there.
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Section D
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Written from wire stories, the Associated Press,
Reuters, Hong Kong Shipping News Lloyds & other world sources.