Sars News

With more ships heading around the Cape of Good Hope due to attacks in the Red Sea region and a shutdown in their main South African bunkering operations, Mercuria and Trafigura have started refuelling services in Mauritius, four sources said.The two trading houses have opened operations in Port Louis to compensate for the shutdown at South Africa's Algoa Bay which stems from a tax dispute with authorities, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.Algoa Bay is South Africa's…

Mako Industries signed an agreement with C-Innovation to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 on its offshore construction vessels, beginning with the 168-m Island Venture. Mako uses Puradigm to combat air and surface contaminants safely in populated environments 24/7, and it has capabilities for managing projects for existing facilities and new construction, with service recently made available for the oil and gas, healthcare, industrial, commercial and higher education markets.Click HERE to read related story on Mako Industries“We are pleased to have selected Mako’s Covid Mitigation system…

Today would have been the day that SMM 2020 opened its doors if it hadn't been for the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, organizers of the maritime industry's largest trade fair are preparing for the rescheduled date in February 2021."Of course, the entire SMM team is a bit sad the fair isn't starting today. But increasingly, this regret is giving way to a sense of anticipation of a rather unique SMM in February 2021," says Claus Ulrich Selbach, Business Unit Director – Maritime and Technology Fairs & Exhibitions at Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH (HMC).

Retired New Yorkers Mahlon and Kim Russell have taken 15 cruises over the past 15 years, visiting destinations from Tahiti to St. Petersburg, primarily with Norwegian Cruise Line.After canceling a fall trip to Europe, in July the Russells booked a 10-day cruise around Australia and New Zealand—for January 2022.“We love cruising,” said Mahlon Russell. “But we don’t love it enough to be the first ones out of the gate.”The cruise industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic…

ABS has launched guidance on sanitizing and decontaminating marine and offshore assets exposed to COVID-19, applicable to commercial and naval vessels, as well as drilling units, production installations and other offshore units."Response Measures to COVID-19 for the Marine and Offshore Industries provides best practice guidelines for sanitizing assets exposed to COVID-19 and helps maritime leadership address the many challenges the virus brings," ABS said.The marine and offshore classification company also says that the best practices document helps to answer a range of practical…

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a pandemic. There is little doubt that this will have significant implications for the shipping industry. But to what extent? BIMCO expects that the strict containment measures imposed by governments around the world will result in substantially lower global economic growth and consequentially, lower demand for shipping. Container and dry bulk shipping are at the front line when it comes to feeling the fallout…

The COVID-19 epidemic, which was first called the novel Coronavirus and then the 2019-nCoV, is spreading fast around the world. It is more contagious than the 2002 SARS outbreak, its cousin, but not as lethal. Unfortunately, its impact on the maritime community seems to already be greater than that of SARS.Ships are being required to submit Maritime Declarations of Health prior to arrival. Ships that called in Chinese ports during the previous 14 days or have persons on board…

Global shipping holds its breath as the coronavirus continues to spread and generates massive economic and financial uncertainty.Two weeks ago, BIMCO argued that – from an economic perspective - when China sneezes, we all catch the flu. Since the SARS outbreak in 2003, the global economy has become much more interlinked with China and the Chinese economy has grown to become the second largest in the world.While hard facts and reliable data are in high demand, they are in short supply, nevertheless it’s time for a more thorough diagnosis on how this affects the global shipping industry.The coronavirus outbreak coincided with the Lunar New Year, which led to nation-wide extensions of the holiday. However, even with the passing of the holiday extensions, large parts of China remain closed.

A Japanese infectious disease specialist has castigated his government's handling of quarantine on a coronavirus-stricken cruise ship, saying it was run by "bureaucrats" who stoked the crisis by failing to follow basic protocols.Kentaro Iwata of Kobe University Hospital took his criticism to YouTube after he spent a day as a volunteer doctor on the Diamond Princess. The luxury liner has become an incubator for the novel coronavirus, with more than 600 people now infected.The ship docked in Yokohama on Feb. 3. Japan has been criticized for its handling of the quarantine, including by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).But Iwata's criticism is some of the most scathing yet."The cruise ship was completely inadequate in terms of the infection control…

When President Xi Jinping made his first state visit this year to Myanmar and signed new infrastructure contracts, there was no indication of the obstacle about to trip up China's plan for railways, ports and highways around the world: the coronavirus.Travel restrictions to prevent the spread of the disease, which has now killed more than 1,800 people, have idled much of the world's second-largest economy and choked key elements of Xi's signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).Chinese workers cannot get to overseas projects…

The Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has placed the shipping industry on high alert amid a rising death toll in China and reports that the fast-spreading illness is reaching new shores.The flu-like coronavirus, first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China on December 31, has killed more than two dozen people in China and is believed to have infected more than 900 worldwide, according to several media reports. Cases have been confirmed in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong, and internationally in travelers returning from China to Japan…

Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease. It is so contagious that 90% of non-immune persons will become infected if an infected person is in the immediate vacinity. It is an airborne disease spread through coughs, sneezes, and contact with saliva or nasal secretions. The virus can live for up to two hours in infected airspace or on infected surfaces. Individuals are infectious from four days before symptoms appear until four days after the patient is symptom-free. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, inflamed eyes, and a red, flat rash.

Some EU officials say NGOs inadvertently encourage people smuggling; NGOs say they are only trying to save lives. A "ferry service" that encourages people smugglers or an essential humanitarian rescue service that saves thousands of African migrants making a dangerous sea crossing to Europe? This debate among EU officials about the role of aid groups in the Mediterranean highlights their dilemma between the moral and legal obligation of helping those in need, and growing pressure from voters to keep them away. Escaping wars and poverty, more than 360,000 refugees and migrants made it to European shores across the Mediterranean last year. Most of them arrived on EU rescue vessels.

The Irish Coast Guard coordinated a successful Marine Search and Rescue demonstration on Saturday 16th July. The exercise in Moville Co Donegal involved some of Ireland’s principal Search and Rescue resources. Participants included Donegal based volunteer Coast Guard units, the Sligo based Coast Guard Rescue Helicopter, Naval ship LÉ Orla,  Air Corps Casa, RNLI’s new Shannon Class All Weather Lifeboat, Bord Iascaigh Mhara, UK Maritime Coastguard Agency, Irish Water Safety, Mountain Rescue Ireland and the Civil Defence. The event included a series of water based safety demonstrations: “Prevention and adherence to basic safety is the key element in minimising loss of life at sea and on our waterways”, concluded SARs Manager Gerard O’Flynn.

Seven years ago, I authored an article on quarantine and isolation. With the outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in West Africa, it is time to dust off and update that article. The concepts of quarantine and isolation lie at the juncture of medicine, law and public safety. When these concepts intersect with the maritime community, things quickly get both interesting and complicated. Quarantine and isolation have been invoked in cases of communicable diseases throughout human history. Special treatment of lepers is mentioned in the Bible.

Global maritime organizations have issued health guidance on the risks posed to ships’ crews calling in countries affected by the Ebola virus. International ship supplier, Hutton’s Group, is responding to requests for information and assistance from its maritime customers by highlighting the range of medical protective equipment available for use in pandemic situations. Infection Containment Personal Protective Equipment kits, sometimes referred to as Pandemic Kits, are available for emergency use during pandemic outbreaks such as Ebola, SARS and Avian Influenza ('bird flu').

The International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) – the international charity representing the world’s maritime search and rescue organizations – has held its first Asia Pacific Regional meeting and agreed on an action plan with the 17 Search and Rescue (SAR) organizations attending. Organized by the IMRF’s Asia-Pacific Regional Center (APRC), which was officially launched last September, the event was supported by China Rescue and Salvage (CRS) and, included more than 40 delegates from Korea, Thailand, Singapore, DPR Korea, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. The meeting was formally opened by Mr. Zhenliang Wang, Director General of China Rescue and Salvage…

SARS Corp. (OTCBB: SARO.OTC), a provider of technologies dedicated to the satellite-based management of fixed and mobile assets, together with its marketing partner, Securewest International, Inc., a maritime security and emergency response company, announced its agreement to integrate the SkyWave Mobile Communication Inc. Long Range Identification Tracking (LRIT) solution with the SARS asset tracking and management systems. In addition, SARS and Securewest International have been selected as joint Test Application Service Providers (ASP) for certification of their respective asset tracking systems for the Flag Administrations of Kuwait, Mauritius, Australia, Bahamas, Gibraltar, United Kingdom, Bermuda, Norway, Turkey, St.

Average crude oil prices for July were little changed from June. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) spot average for July was $30.75 per barrel compared to $30.66 in June. EIA’s Outlook is for prices to remain firm through the rest of 2003, or at least until autumn, when OECD oil inventories may rebuild above observed 5-year lows. Once inventories have been rebuilt, WTI oil prices may slide gradually to $26 per barrel during 2004, as Iraqi oil exports return to near pre-war levels. U.S.

ports. handling increase of 5.8 percent. terminals. period last year. 3.3 million tons. unit) were handled at the Hamburg Container Terminals. increase of 14.9 percent compared to the same period last year. increase in container turnover. Europe (Bremen/Bremerhaven, Rotterdam and Antwerp). increase its market share," said Dr. Hamburg marketing(HHM). only slightly impaired by the SARS epidemic," he added. epidemic. year. from China remains unchanged. shipping area in northern Europe," said Dr. Sorgenfrei. and 10 percent were also recorded. Subcontinent in particular increased by a clear 11.3 percent. the year. cargo was handled in the second quarter than in the same period last year. increased by 0.8 percent. respectively. remained lower than imports from that region.

By Dennis L. Dangers posed by movement of species from one part of the world to another where they are uncommon (non-indigenous) have been recognized since the black death (bubonic plague) arrived in western Europe from central Asia in the 1300's, killing up to one-third of Europe's population. Modern medicine has been able to address most disease outbreaks, as evidenced by our recent experience with SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). The environment has coped less successfully. Since man began traveling long distances in relatively short time, plants and animals have also made the voyage. Some have been brought intentionally, as when European domestic animals and crops were transported to America and Australia for farming. Others, such as rats, were brought unintentionally.

Drewry Shipping Consultants, announced that its latest report, “Annual Container Market Review and Forecast 2003/04” highlights that despite economic uncertainty, the war in Iraq and the outbreak of the SARS virus, 2003 will be a good year for liner shipping companies as trade volumes, especially to and from China, register strong growth. The report reports how this year has seen a further recovery in the liner shipping industry as the cargo volume surges experienced in headhaul trades out of Asia in 2002 continued into the first half of 2003. What is more, these containers are being carried at significantly higher freight rates than last year, with Drewry Shipping Consultants projecting total gross carrier income of a record US$106 billion in 2003, up more than 19 percent on last year.

China's importance in the world maritime market has accelerated rapidly over the past decade, but it appears that current and near future growth will prove even more prolific. Chinese shipyards for 10 years have continued to dent the market share numbers of major shipbuilders in Japan, Korea and Europe, and it appears that the shipyards will continue to scoop up ship repair and new ship construction business. It emerged this year as the third largest shipbuilding country in the world, with about seven percent of worldwide business as measured by compensated gross tonnage (cgt). According to a recent report from Drewry Shipping Consultants, China's shipbuilding capacity is set to increase threefold, to 3.5 million cgt, by 2005/2006.