USCG, Stakeholders Respond to Whittier, AK Explosion, Dock Fire
Coast Guard crews have suspended the search for one person missing after an explosion and subsequent fire at Delong Dock in Whittier, Alaska, Monday.An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, forward deployed to Cordova, searched by air while crews aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Chandeleur and Coast Guard Auxiliary 336 also conducted a search for the missing person.Shortly after midnight, Coast Guard Sector Anchorage watchstanders heard the phrase "Whittier fire…
USDOT Award Tiger Vl Maritime Grants
American Association of Port Authorities
 (AAPA) say that after evaluating 797 applications totaling requests for $9 billion for FY 2014 Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants, U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Anthony Foxx has announced 72 awards totaling $584 million will be distributed in the sixth round of this multimodal, discretionary grant program. Another $54,469,652 comprising five awards, which is equal to about 9 percent of the total funding, is going to what USDOT classifies as “freight rail” projects. Like freight rail, millions more are being awarded to various road and planning projects which aid in the movement of freight into and out of America’s seaports. On the U.S. DOT’s TIGER Grants web page, Sec.
Cox Heads Crowley Sales and Marketing, Anchorage
Crowley announced that Bob Cox has assumed sales and marketing responsibility for the company's petroleum distribution group in Alaska. This is in addition to his role as general manager of the company's supply and distribution functions. Cox will remain domiciled in the company's Anchorage office and will continue reporting to Craig Tornga, vice president of petroleum distribution. Cox is responsible for the sales and marketing function of Crowley's petroleum terminals, which have a combined fuel capacity of 39 million gallons. A veteran of the Alaska petroleum sales and distribution market, Cox also brings transportation experience to his position. Prior to joining Crowley in 2007, he was vice president at both Petro Marine Services and Alaska Railroad.
Gunderson Marine Launches Second of Railroad Barge Trio
Gunderson, Inc. launched the second in a series of what are reportedly three of the largest barges ever built for the maritime industry. Named Fairbanks Provider, the 420- x 100- x 24-ft. barge is being built for Alaska Railbelt Marine for service between Seattle, Wash. and Alaska. Equipped with a RoRo feature for easy cargo handling, the barge will carry the railroad freight cars and cargo in service between Seattle and Whittier, Alaska for the Alaska Railroad.
Cruise Relations Get Chilly In Alaska
After a decade that saw the size of Alaska cruise ship crowds triple and pollution from the massive vessels foul area waterways, state officials are moving to blunt the negative impact of the booming industry. Cruise ships that ply the Inside Passage and other Alaska waters are not subject to state oversight, even though they carry hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel and more people than the populations of some of the port cities they visit. Alaska Gov. Tony Knowles has introduced a bill to change that. It would require those ships, along with large cargo ships, fishing vessels and the state-owned Alaska Railroad, to meet the same kind of spill prevention and response standards as state law requires of oil tankers.
