Some 100 missing after collision in Bangladesh

     A ferry collided with another vessel and capsized in southern
Bangladesh on 22 Jan. Six people were killed and about 100 are missing. The
collision occurred in the Kocha River in the Pirojpur district. The bodies
of four women and two children were recovered and at least 50 people swam
ashore or were rescued by fishermen. The ferry was sailing between Barguna
and Pirojpur. The crews of both vessels fled.

More than 600 rescued from ferry off China

     Reports from China this week said that local police rescued more than
600 people from a flooding ferry off Guangdong province on 16 Jan.

Seven missing from Honduran-registry ship in the Mediterranean

     The Agios Panteleimon (Honduran-registry 1,847-gt, 1,252-dwt,
72-meter/236-foot motor bulk carrier built in 1972, owned by Greek
interests and operated by Tepster Shipping Ltd.) sank the afternoon of 17
Jan., 27 kilometers/17 miles southwest of Italy's Sardinia Island at 38
degrees 50 minutes north, 07 degrees 59 minutes east. It was sailing from
Castellon de la Plana, Spain, with 2,000 tons of bulk ammonium sulphate to
Vasto, Italy. Of the nine crewmembers (five Pakistani and four Greek
citizens), two (the Greek first officer and a Pakistani crewmember) were
rescued by Italian Coast Guard helicopters after they were found floating
amid debris. The Pakistani crewmember was taken to a hospital in Cagliari,
Italy. Weather conditions included seas of seven meters/23 feet and winds
of 52 knots. According to the first officer, the Agios Panteleimon was hit
by a "huge wave" and the vessel sank soon after. At least two bodies have
been recovered, including and Kotza Mehmet Suladin, of Komotini, Greece,
and Pakistani citizen Mehmet Piaz.

Three dead, one missing after explosion

     The Dae Won (South Korean-registry 473-gt, 1,208-dwt motor chemical
tanker) had an explosion and fire in its No. 1 cargo tank on 20 Jan. while
anchored at Ulsan, South Korea. The crew was cleaning the ship's tanks.
Four people were rescued, three were killed and one is missing. The fire
has been brought under control.

Two missing from grounded ship at Kashima

     The Sunny Glory (Belize-registry 1,257-ton vessel) ran aground late 15
Jan. leaving the Port of Kashima, Japan. The ship took a starboard list
near a breakwater and almost capsized, with most of its superstructure
submerged. Two crewmembers, the master, Chon Kun, 52, of South Korea, and
the chief mate, Nyan Aung, 50, of Myanmar, are missing. Seven others aboard
were rescued by a Japanese Air Self-Defense Force helicopter early 16 Jan.
Heavy seas and 30-knot winds were reported. Oil leaked from the ship.

Update on the break-up of the Flare

     The Flare (Cypriot-registry 16,947-gt, 29,222-dwt, 9,549-nt,
180.8-meter/593.2-foot bulk carrier built in 1972 at Hakodate, Japan; owned
by ABTA Shipping and operated by Trade Fortune Inc.) broke-up 16 Jan. at 46
degrees 57 minutes north, 56 degrees 51 minutes west. A Canadian Air
Command CH-113A Labrador helictoper rescued four crewmembers from a
capsized lifeboat but 15 others were killed and six are missing. Among
those dead and missing are four Greek citizens including master Zannis
Georgoulis, first mate Polychronis Psomas and cook Ioannis Venardis and
several Romanian citizens. One of the survivors had a broken arm and all
had hypothermia. They included three Philippine citizens, including Peter
Soriano, and one citizen from the former Yugoslavia, Petra Markovic. They
were treated at St.-Pierre, St. Pierre and Miquelon, a group of French
islands south of Newfoundland. The Flare broke-up 80 kilometers/50 miles
southwest of the islands, with the aft section sinking. The forward section
drifted towards Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, until it sank late 20 Jan.
The Flare was sailing from Rotterdam, the Netherlands, to Montreal to load
grain.

     According to the four survivors, the break-up was signaled only by a
loud crack. Photographs of the broken aft section show a clean break, which
some have speculated was caused by a fast-running brittle crack. A garbled
distress call from the ship at 0340 was received by the Canadian Coast
Guard's facility at Stephenville, Newfoundland. Weather included
four-meter/13-foot seas and winds of about 40 knots. About half of the
crew, including the officers, were new to the Flare, having joined the ship
in Rotterdam.

     The International Transport Workers' Federation said that the crew was
covered by an agreement with a Cypriot labor union and it will pursue
claims that may total U.S.$50,000 per person. The Flare was insured with
the U.K. P&I Club and had hull insurance in the London market. According to
the ship's classification society, Lloyd's Register, the Flare was in class
when it broke-up and was surveyed in November. The Flare was detained at
Plymouth, England, for four days in October after a port state control
inspection found rusted lifeboat davits. It had a special survey under
Lloyd's Register's Enhanced Safety Program in January 1996 after extensive
steel renewal. The Flare is the first bulk carrier classed by Lloyd's
Register to be lost since June 1994.

Three crew of the New Baron rescued, five dead and 12 missing

     The New Baron (Panamanian-registry 4,400-gt, 7,000-dwt general cargo
ship built in 1990, operated by Cho Yang Shipping Co. Ltd.), sailing from
Okgae, South Korea, to Lae, Papua New Guniea, with 5,000 tons of cement,
ran aground on rocks in strong winds and heavy seas 15 Jan., 700
meters/2,300 feet offshore near Ulsan, South Korea. The ship later flooded
and is partially submerged. Five Philippine crewmembers were killed and 12
are missing, including the master, Romeo Quidon, 54. The five killed were
identified as Expejeto Collado, 36; Nazareth Concepcion, 25; Marcelo
Pastrana, 40; Joel Tayancona, 27; and Jaime Teodoro, 55. Three others were
rescued 16 Jan. First engineer Delfin Narciso, 35, and Miguelito Ewicin,
27, were found clinging to the upper deck of the ship. Glicerto Viliacamp,
41, was found drifting in a life vest and was covered in oil.

Twenty crew rescued from capsized ship off Russia

     The Solombala (Russian-registry 1,161-gt, 1,765-dwt motor bulk carrier
built in 1966 in Hungary, owned by Ukraina and operated by
Kamchatgeologaya) capsized at 0535 21 Jan. in Russia's Tatar Strait between
Sakhalin Island and the mainland. The ship was sailing from Vanino, Russia,
to Japan, with timber when it began taking on water. The trawler Sibirtsevo
rescued the 20 crew and took them to Kholmsk on Sakhalin. At last report,
the Solombala was partially submerged and adrift in the strait.

Cargo shift causes ship to list in the North Sea

     The Figaros (Antigua and Barbuda-registry 2,050-gt, 3,254-dwt motor
dry cargo ship built in 1980, operated by Reederei Rord Braren) was last
reported at 53 degrees 41.1 minutes north, 05 degrees 50.5 minutes east,
off the Netherlands with a 10 to 15-degree list and minor cargo hold
damage. The ship was sailing from Kiel, Germany, to Rotterdam, the
Netherlands, with steel when the cargo shifted.

Bulk carrier grounds off Guayaquil

     The Marianic K (Cypriot-registry 25,620-dwt bulk carrier built in
1980, operated by Seabound Maritime Inc.) ran aground earlier this month
off Guayaquil, Ecuador. The ship apparently ran aground in a channel due to
the lack of dredging.

L.P.G. carrier suffers engine damage

     The Mette Kosan (Danish-registry 2,323-gt, 2,530-dwt motor liquefied
petroleum gas carrier built in 1982, operated by Lauritzen Kosan Tankers),
sailing from Teesport, England, to Leixoes, Portugal, suffered damage to
its turbo blowers on 20 Jan. at 49 degrees 49 minutes north, 02 degrees 48
minutes west, in the English Channel. It has called at Portland, England,
for repairs.

J.A.W. Iglehart refloated in Michigan

     The J.A.W. Iglehart (9,460-gt, 12,589-dwt, 6,028-nt,
152.9-meter/501.5-foot steam bulk carrier built in 1936 by Sun Shipbuilding
& Dry Dock Co. at Chester, Penn.; operated by Inland Lakes Management Inc.)
was refloated about 2118 15 Jan. The ship ran aground 14 Jan. about 2.1
kilometers/1.3 miles from the LaFarge Corp. facility in Alpena, Mich. The
tug Kathy Lynn (140-gt, 95-nt, 26-meter/85-foot motor tug with 1,500 brake
horsepower; built in 1944, operated by Ryba Marine Construction Co.)
refloated the J.A.W. Iglehart after it was lightered by the Alpena
(8,018-gt, 5,452-nt, 158.3-meter/519.5-foot steam bulk carrier built in
1942 by Great Lakes Engineering Works at River Rouge, Mich.; operated by
Inland Lakes Management).

Assets of Heracles Shipping frozen as part of Dystos case

     A court of first instance in Piraeus, Greece, has approved a petition
freezing the assets of Heracles Shipping Co. The petition was filed by 30
relatives of those killed aboard the Dystos (Greek-registry 6,197-dwt bulk
carrier built in 1972, owned and operated by Heracles Shipping). The Dystos
capsized 29 Dec., 1996, off Kimi, Evia Island, Greece, in bad weather and
sank 2 Jan., 1997. Seventeen crewmembers and three relatives aboard were
killed. One person survived. The ship was carrying 5,300 tons of cement
from Volos, Greece, to Piraeus. Following six decisions by a special court,
which tentatively attributed the incident to "internal structural
collapse," it ordered that 493 million Greek drachmas/U.S.$1.73 million of
the company's assets be frozen. The victims' relatives had requested 6.4
billion drachmas/U.S.$22 million in damages and distress. The parent
company, AGET-Heracles, will have to deposit the amount in the form of a
letter of guarantee until a final verdict is reached.

Preliminary findings of expedition to the Cordigliera released

     An expedition to the Cordigliera (Panamanian-registry 12,025-gt,
16,525-dwt dry cargo ship built in 1979 in Sunderland, England; owned by
Sinha Shipping Pte. Ltd. and operated by Transatlantica Esp.) has found
serious structural damage, according to analysis of sonar scans of the
hull. Damage is said to be particularly heavy around the No. 1 cargo hold.
The Cordigliera sank early 14 Nov., 1996, some 6.5 kilometers/10 miles off
Umzimvubu, South Africa. The location is 31 degrees 21 minutes south, 30
degrees 01 minutes east. It was sailing from Durban, South Africa, to Cape
Town, South Africa. The mixed cargo included granite. The U.S.$200,000
expedition was organized by the International Transport Workers' Federation
and the South African Department of Transport. The federation said the
inspection is part of in an effort to have Sinha Shipping compensate the
relatives of the 29 crewmembers who were killed. The Cordigliera is at a
depth of 90 meters/300 feet. Divers have not yet reached the shipwreck. The
expedition is being conducted from the Chelsea Jean, a converted suction
dredger that has been at the area since 14 Jan.

Australian investigation into grounding points to lack of adequate charts

     A report into the grounding of the Western Winner (Panamanian-registry
30,396-dwt bulk carrier built in 1982, operated by Fortuna Navigation Co.
Ltd.) has found that it sailed into Australian territorial waters without
proper charts. According to the Australian government, it has investigated
three casualties since December 1995 in which the vessel involved did not
have adequate charts. The report into the Western Winner incident said that
a charter party placed upon an owner a contractual obligation to ensure a
vessel is ready for the voyage, including unexpected calls at unscheduled
ports. The Australian Wheat Board chartered the ship to load grain in
eastern Australian for Egypt. It left Singapore on 27 April after a special
survey and en route, the loading port was changed to Port Adelaide,
Australia, and on 6 May, it was changed again to Wallaroo, Australia. The
Western Winner did not have charts for Wallaroo and requested two charts
from its agents by Telex. On 8 May, in rain and restricted visibility, the
bulk carrier ran aground. The Western Winner was refloated the next day
from Tiparra Reef after jettisoning ballast. The manager of the ship said
he expected that the Western Winner had charts for the area as it called at
Whyalla, Australia, in 1992. Fortuna Navigator said neither the master nor
the agent contacted it of the chart situation and said the grounding was
caused by "negligence of navigation."