Tag: USCG

Bulkers freed from ice The escort of Canadian Progress and Canadian Enterprise ended Saturday night with the convoy stopping in the lower St. Clair River near Russell Island.Efforts began again Sunday morning about 6 a.m., with the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Samuel Risley breaking a track into the lower river then returning to escort the freighters. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Morro Bay joined the close escort and the icebreakers slugged it out with the ice. It was slow going and the convoy reached Lake St. Clair about 11:30 a.m. U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bristol Bay departed Detroit and joined the efforts on Lake St. Clair, later turning and heading upbound.Canadian Enterprise made her dock at Ojibay salt in Windsor, where she loaded for another trip to South Chicago. Progress followed Morro Bay and Risley downbound to Western Lake Erie, where the waiting Canadian Coast Guard Ship Griffon would escort her into lay-up dock at Port Colborne, Ont.Later in the day, the Risley met up with the tug Invincible and barge McKee Sons, heading upbound from Ashtabula with coal for Trenton, Mich. They met off Colchester about 9:45 p.m.Source: Boatnerd

Thick fog interrupts traffic along the channel Ships resumed moving along the Houston Ship Channel late Tuesday morning after dense fog dissipated, the U.S. Coast Guard said.The three-hour shutdown would have only a minor impact on moving ships through the 53-mile waterway between the Gulf of Mexico and the busiest U.S. petrochemical port, the Coast Guard said.Houston ship pilots called a halt at 8:20 a.m. CST (1420 GMT) to ship movements along the channel when sea fog became so thick it made navigation of the waterway unsafe.Sea fog frequently interrupts traffic along the ship channel during winter months.Source: Reuters

USCG name-based terrorism check for security personnel The US Coast Guard issued a revised Port Security Advisory regarding procedures for obtaining a name-based terrorism check for security personnel operating in high-risk waters (HRW) in accordance with PSA 05-09 (Rev 1). The only revision relates to an updated point of contact within the Coast Guard for submittal of security personnel information.You may view the revised Port Security Advisory.Source: US Coast Guard

USCG requests feedback on fees related to the MARPOL Reception Facility Program Inspectors from U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector Houston Facility met with officials from Intercontinental Terminals responsible for implementing their 33 CFR 158 Certificate of Adequacy (COA) (MARPOL Reception Facility Program).Discussions covered the process by which the facility implements their COA program. Intercontinental Terminals has a COA for Oil (Annex I), NLS (Annex II), and Garbage (Annex V) that expires on 7 November 2013 and the facility uses third parties to remove each of these wastes - solely using trucks.The USCG discussed the fees charged by the facility, and found that none were unreasonable or would cause a disincentive for ships requesting to depose of oil, NLS, or garbage waste. However the USCG is requesting feedback to validate this information.Source: US Coast Guard

USCG updated advisory regarding piracy and armed robbery against ships The US Coast Guard issued an updated advisory relating to prevention and deterrence of piracy and armed robbery against ships. The advisory has been revised solely to reflect the latest release of MARSEC Directive 104-6 (series).Please refer to the full text of the Safety Advisory.Source: US Coast Guard

USCG random drug testing rate stays at 50% The US Coast Guard issued a notice stating that the 2011 minimum random drug testing rate for covered crewmembers on US vessels will remain at 50%.Please refer to the Notice.Source: US Coast Guard

USCG severe weather procedures for Aleutian Islands area The US Coast Guard issued 2010-2011 Operating Procedures for Severe Weather in the Aleutian Islands and Pribilof Islands. These procedures automatically go into effect whenever severe weather occurs or is forecast to occur within 48 hours. Severe weather is defined as: (1) sustained winds that exceed 45 knots; (2) wind gusts that exceed 60 knots; (3) a "winter storm warning" issued by the National Weather Service; or (4) any combination of the above for any part of the Aleutian or Pribilof Islands.Source: US Coast Guard

USCG lifesaving & firefighting equipment on UTVs The US Coast Guard issued a policy letter providing temporary exemptions from various regulatory requirements pertaining to uninspected towing vessels (UTVs) and providing guidance with regard to carriage of "excess" lifesaving and firefighting equipment on UTVs.This policy is temporary in nature and may be superseded for inspected towing vessels when pending regulations for the inspection of towing vessels become effective.You may view the policy letter by clicking here.Source: US Coast Guard

Recent inspections of PFD revealed a hazard that may prevent donning in case of emergency The US Coast Guard issued a safety alert stating that recent inspections of Type I Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs), in both adult and child size, revealed a potential hazard that could prevent proper donning in the event of an emergency. The chest strap on certain PFDs was threaded through the fixed "D" ring that the strap was intended to clip to when worn. Instead of the strap falling away, allowing the wearer to wrap it around himself or herself, the clip end of the strap could snag in the "D" ring. The PFDs known to be affected are: Kent Adult Model 8830 (USCG Approval Number 160.055/184/0) in Lot 53W manufactured in October 2006 and Kent Child Model 8820 (USCG Approval Number 160.055/150/0) in Lot 012T manufactured in March 2008. Vessel owners and operators should examine their PFDs to determine whether any of them present this hazard. If so, the manufacturer should be contacted.Please refer to the full text of the Safety Alert.Source: US Coast Guard