Acadien II victims launch lawsuit

The families of four sealers who died when their fishing boat sank near the Magdalen Islands in March 2008 have filed a $2.7-million lawsuit against the Canadian Coast Guard and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The two survivors of the sinking are also participating in the lawsuit. The 12-metre trawler L'Acadien II, from the Îles de la Madeleine, Que., was being towed by the Sir William Alexander in the Gulf of St. Lawrence on March 29, 2008, when the fishing boat hit an ice block and capsized off the coast of Cape Breton, N.S.

Coast Guard still probing death of tugboat crewman - Tugboat Marlin

The U.S. Coast Guard says it is still investigating a 4 p.m. Sunday incident in which a tugboat crewman died. The 52-year-old crewman from the tugboat Marlin was found aboard the vessel unconscious and unresponsive.

Boating accident leaves dredging contractor dead

Boating accident leaves dredging contractor dead New Jersey contractor drowns when boat flips after going over a dam By PAUL NELSON, Staff writer First published in print: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 GANSEVOORT – State Police are investigating a boating accident on the Hudson River that led to the death of a contractor working for General Electric as part of the Hudson River dredging project. Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=867206&category=REGION#ixzz0YHC1LwU5

Fishing Vessel Yvonne Sinking - Off Jacksonville Florida

The U.S. Coast Guard rescued two people from a sinking fishing boat off the coast of Jacksonville early this morning. The 66-foot fishing boat Yvonne was about 3 miles offshore when the Coast Guard received a distress call about 2 a.m. from the vessel and launched a rescue boat from Mayport, officials said. The crew of a Good Samaritan vessel, the Shenandoah, also went to the scene of the sinking vessel and assisted the Coast Guard, officials said. A Coast Guard spokesman said the medical condition of the two people rescued apparently was not “of a serious nature” but they were to be evaluated by medical personnel.

Horizon Lines settles class action with $20m payment

HORIZON Lines has agreed to pay $20m and freeze freight rates in its Puerto Rico trade lane for two years to settle a class action lawsuit brought by disgruntled customers. New York-listed Horizon Lines has also agreed to pay its lenders 1.5% higher interest and a one-off sum of $1.8m in consideration for being allowed to exclude this expenditure from calculations that determine its compliance with covenants

Coast Guard: Be Safe on the Water for Memorial Day

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- The U.S. Coast Guard wants to remind everyone on the water to be safe this holiday weekend.In recent weeks, there have been several boat crashes in the area, most notably on Easter Sunday where five people died on the intracoastal. Also, this week's nor'easter has created the potential for dangerous rip currents and unpredictable water conditions. Boaters need to prepare accordingly

Lady Mary Video

Underwater footage of fishing boat Lady Mary The Coast Guard working with the New Jersey State Police verified the position of the fishing boat Lady Mary, which sank southeast of Cape May on Wednesday, April 29, 2009, with the use of a remotely operated vehicle. The external survey by the ROV shows the Lady Mary generally sitting upright on the bottom. The survey did not reveal any evidence of the remaining missing crew members. (Video provided by the US Coast Guard and New Jersey State Police) Uploaded by ssiditsk on 05/06/09

Lady Mary Sinking - Coast Guard Hearing

Error in recording emerg radio (epirb) hurt search Vessel monitoring system programmer: 2 dozen boats near Lady Mary did not aid sinking vessel.Two dozen boats were in the general area of a stricken scalloping vessel when it sank off Cape May in March, but none came to its aid or joined a later search for survivors, a U.S. fisheries representative told a Coast Guard inquest board today. Testimony: Two boats passed near sinking trawler

CAPE MAY, N.J. - For two to three hours after a scallop boat is believed to have sunk off Cape May, the Coast Guard heard no mayday calls or any other radio reports that something was wrong. That was the testimony Monday from two Coast Guard officers as the agency resumed its hearing into the sinking of the Lady Mary, which went down off Cape May on March 24. Only one the seven crew members survived. The lapse in time from when the boat is believed to have sunk, and when the Coast Guard first heard something was wrong continued to be a main focus of the inquiry. The hearing was suspended in April to allow the ship's captain to hire a lawyer. A Coast Guard inspector says the Lady Mary passed a safety inspection last July. In another article it was said: Two crew members of the doomed scallop boat that sank off the coast last month may have been under the influence of marijuana when the ship went down, killing six of the seven crew members aboard, a witness in the hearing of the fatal sinking testified this morning. Timothy Smith, who died in the sinking, had high levels of the components of marijuana in the blood samples analyzed after the March 24 sinking, said Anthony Costantino, president and CEO of Drug Scan, the Pennsylvania lab hired by the U.S. Coast Guard to analyze the results of the blood tests. Another story goes on: A scallop boat that sank off the coast of Cape May may have tangled its fishing gear with another ship or an obstruction on the bottom of the ocean, the attorney for the ship's owner said yesterday. A cutter with a ROV was used to look at the vessel.

This article indicates that that Owner of the Lady Mary was critical of the Coast Guard Response.

Maersk Alabama Crew Member Files Lawsuit Against Ship Owner - Legal principles behind the claim

From the gcaptain:,

Today, in the 270th Judicial District Court in Houston, Harris County, Texas a lawsuit (case 2009-26129) was filed on behalf of Mr. Richard Hicks, a steward on board the Maersk Alabama. The suit alleges that Maesrk was negligent and that the Maersk Alabama was “unseaworthy” as that term is defined by federal maritime law. If you practice maritime law, you knew this was inevitable. We all know the facts as Captain Phillips’ plight was plastered over our televisions over Easter weekend and we all prayed for his safe return. However, it is not Captain Phillips who is suing Maersk. It is, instead, another crewmember who was on board the Maersk.

How Crowded is Too Crowded on a Boat?? The Answer may not be as Clear as You Think??

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, FL -- Pleasure boats have a Coast Guard plate mounted near the helm listing the maximum weight and the maximum number of people that can safely be on board. But the operator of the Jacksonville Boat Club says that information can be misleading. "They have a safety label and a tag on each and every one of the boats, and it's rated for weight," said Ryan Walker. "There is a capacity on there, but it's based on a 120-to-140 pound person. And as you know, most people getting on the boats are a little heavier than that, unless they have kids, and that kind of stuff." Walker demonstrated that point with thirteen adults and one infant boarding a boat similar to the one that had fourteen aboard when it crashed in Palm Valley, killing five people. "The legal capacity of the boat sometimes far exceeds what's common sense-wise," said Walker, pointing out the demonstration of fourteen people on his 23-foot boat.

Re-posted by Jacksonville Florida Maritime Lawyers / Clark & Watson PA

Joe Cool - Missing Crew - What Are the Lessons that Can be Learned?? How Can Charter Boat Captains and Crew Protect Themselves??

Below is a story about the above pictured boat, The Joe Cool. This tragic story is all over the news. It remains possible that the crew who disappeared on Saturday are still alive. They may have been put off on an island or could be floating in life jackets in the Gulf Stream off the East Coast. We hope they are found safe soon. The Captain and his wife apparently have two small children that they left behind.

It is unknown presently whether there was foul play but the there is speculation that the passengers did something to the crew.

This story raises questions about how Charter Captains and Crew can keep themselves safe if their boat is chartered by passengers with criminal intent. In this age of terrorism and at times piracy one must be vigilant when taking on passengers.

If you have thoughts about how vessel owners, Captains and crews can keep themselves safe from criminal acts please share them with us.

Again we hope there has been no crime and that the Captain and his crew are found safe soon.

UPDATE

Reports in this case say that piracy off South Florida is rare to non-existent. This case, however, demonstrates how easy it is for (alleged) crimials to overpower a knowledable and sizeable crew. One must assume that the antenna of all boat captains and operators will go up following this incident and that it will not just be business as usual. Security measures on big ships like Cruise Ships is common but it seems that more must be done to protect small operators. This may be an isolated incident but one must wonder whether others may copy-cat on this incident. If these passengers did kill the crew (alleged but not proven yet) it shows how easy it would be to repeat this crime. These passengers (if they did it) did not know enough to operate the boat to their destination. If experienced operators pulled the same kind of stunt there is no telling what mischief they could do with a boat of this size. To me, this is an imporatant issue for the boating and yachting community.

From this article ( http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-flbcaptains0930nbsep30,0,3438134.story ) it looks like things may be changing on the docks.

Dwayne Clark