Ten missing after collision off Cheju Island

     The ten crewmembers of the fishing vessel Choun Maru No. 18
(Japanese-registry 144-gt stern trawler) are missing after their vessel
collided with the Welsun (Panamanian-registry 10,909-gt general cargo
vessel) and sank 29 kilometers/18 miles southeast of Cheju Island, South
Korea, on 13 Jan.

Ship sinks off Borneo after burning two days

     A Taiwanese-registry vessel sank in the South China Sea off Borneo at
1230 11 Jan. after it caught fire 9 Jan. All 21 crewmembers - three
Chinese, 15 Myanmar citizens and three Taiwanese - were rescued. Seventeen,
including one injured crewmember, were rescued by another vessel 9 Jan.
Four engineers were rescued by four divers from Sabah, Malaysia,
afterwards. The injured crewmember, Wong Yi Ming, a Taiwanese citizen in
his 40s, was flown to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kota Kinabalu,
Malaysia, by Sabah Air Pty. Ltd. The ship was sailing from Miri, Malaysia,
to Kaohsiung, Taiwan. It is believed that the fire started among plywood on
the fourth deck.

U.S. Coast Guard rescues crew of fishing vessel off eastern United States

     The Trinity (U.S.-registry 198-gt fishing vessel) sank 16 Jan. at 40
degrees, 02 minutes north, 71 degrees, 52 minutes west, off the eastern
United States. The crew boarded a liferaft and were rescued by the U.S.
Coast Guard.

French-registry trawler suffers fire in North Sea

     The Moussaillon (French-registry 595-gt stern trawler) suffered a fire
16 Jan. at 61 degrees, 14 minutes north, 02 degrees, 12 minutes east, in
the North Sea. The 18 crewmembers were rescued by the Normand Mjolne
(Norwegian-registry 2,500-dwt tug/supply vessel built in 1985, operated by
Solstad Shipping A/S). The Normand Mjolne is standing by the Moussaillon
and is spraying the trawler with water.

Latvian-registry ship collides with passenger ferry off Copenhagen

     The Cesis (Latvian-registry) collided at 0600 16 Jan. with the Povl
Anker (Danish-registry 2,361-dwt passenger ferry built in 1978, operated by
Bornholmstrafikken A/S) off Copenhagen, Denmark. Weather conditions
included heavy fog. The ferry's stern was holed above the waterline but
there were no injuries. The Povl Anker had 128 passengers and 51 crew
aboard, sailing from Copenhagen to Bornholm Island, Denmark.

Margaret Lykes collides with Kinso in Scheldt River

     The Margaret Lykes (U.S.-registry 39,132-gt containership built in
1987) suffered a power failure 10 Jan. and subsequently suffered steering
problems. The ship then collided with the Kinso (Bahamian-registry
1,106-gt, 1,225-dwt bulk carrier built in 1972, operated by Continental
Shipmanagement A/S). The Margaret Lykes suffered minor damage and sailed to
Antwerp, Belgium. The Kinso had more serious damage and anchored at
Flushing Roads, the Netherlands. The Kinso had been sailing to Trondheim,
Norway.

Tassos N runs aground leaving Fremantle

     The Tassos N (41,343-dwt bulk carrier built in 1986, operated by
A.M.-T.M.A. Nomikos S.A.) ran aground leaving Fremantle, Australia, on 10
Jan. The ship, carrying 38,775 tons of alumina loaded by Alcoa and sailing
to the United States, suffered a steering problem. Tugs refloated the ship
shortly after noon and the Tassos N anchored in Cockburn Sound.

Dubai Bay grounds near Karachi

     The Dubai Bay (German-registry 19,819-gt containership) ran aground
near the Bhit Islands off Karachi, Pakistan, on 11 Jan. A bolt in the
steering system sheared off and the steering jammed as the ship left
Karachi for Colombo, Sri Lanka. Some of the ship's cargo was unloaded and
the Dubai Bay was refloated. It then sailed to Oil Pier I in Karachi to
reload its cargo.

Andhika Madonna drift in the Atlantic

     The Andhika Madonna (Singaporean-registry 19,864-gt, 33,347-dwt bulk
carrier built in 1985, owned by Andhika Transport Pte. Ltd. and operated by
Andhika Shipmanagement Pte. Ltd.) has suffered engine problems and is
adrift in the Atlantic. The ship is sailing from Vancouver, British
Columbia, to Antwerp, Belgium. The Andhika Madonna was last reported at 37
degrees, 27 minutes north, 39 degrees, 37 minutes west.

Six Greek personnel may be disciplined for delays in Dystos sinking

     The Greek Merchant Marine Ministry on 15 Jan. announced that six Greek
Coast Guard personnel caused a delay in responding to the capsizing of the
Dystos (Greek-registry 6,197-dwt bulk carrier built in 1972, converted to a
cement carrier in 1985, classed with Lloyd's Register, owned and operated
by Heracles Shipping Co.) on 28 Dec. off Kimi, Evia Island, Greece, in bad
weather. The vessel sank 2 Jan. Seventeen people were killed and three are
missing while only one crewmember survived. The Dystos was carrying 5,300
tons of cement from Volos to Piraeus. In addition to the crew, one
crewmember was travelling with his wife while another crewmember's wife and
12-year-old daughter were also aboard. The first Greek Coast Guard
personnel arrived at the Dystos 10 hours after the capsizing. The six named
by the ministry include two officers at the ministry's operations center
and four officers of the Kimi port authority. The six will be asked to make
statements to the chief of the port authority, Vice Adm. Pericles
Ousantzopoulos. He will then recommend any disciplinary measures.

Nakhodka update

     As clean-up continues and more oil comes ashore along six Japanese
prefectures, the amount of oil spilled by the Nakhodka (Russian-registry
13,157-gt, 20,471-dwt tanker built in 1970, operated by Primorsk Shipping
Co. and owned by Prisco Traffic Ltd.) has been revised. The ship broke in
half at 0250 2 Jan. in the Sea of Japan, about 130 kilometers/80.6 miles
northeast of the Oki Islands, Shimane Prefecture, Japan. Thirty-one of the
32 crew were rescued and the master is missing. The Nakhodka carried 19,000
tons of grade C heavy fuel, or 19 million liters/five million gallons or
133,000 barrels, and was sailing from China to Russia's Kamchatka
Peninsula. It was estimated that 3,700 tons of grade C heavy oil spilled,
or 3,660,000 liters/962,000 gallons or 26,000 barrels. The amount of oil
spilled was revised 15 Jan. to five million liters/1.3 million gallons or
4,500 tons. On 10 Jan., Prisco Traffic said it would pay for all clean-up
operations but Russia has also pledged U.S.$270,000. Russia has also sent
two vessels to assist in collecting oil, the Lazurit (1,120 tons) and the
Neftegas-5.