Bering Sea News

A new safety alert issued by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) urges vessel owners and operators to provide each crewmember with a personal locator device. These devices improve a mariner’s chance of rescue during an emergency.During an emergency at sea, a mariner’s chance of survival decreases if search and rescue cannot quickly and accurately identify their location. Personal locator devices, such as personal locator beacons (PLB) or satellite emergency notification devices (SEND), can accurately pinpoint a person’s location.

The much-needed replacement for the U.S. Coast Guard’s long-serving medium endurance cutters (WMEC) took a giant step closer to joining the fleet as the first Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) was launched and christened at Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG) in Panama City, Fla. on October 27, 2023.The future USCGC Argus (WMSM 915) was christened by the ship’s sponsor, Captain (Ret.) Beverly Kelley, the first woman to command a U.S. military vessel, the 95-foot patrol boat, USCGC Cape Newagen (WPB 95318).

The first US-built trawler-processor for Alaskan pollock in over three decades is now undergoing sea trials in the Northern Pacific, testing an integrated technology package from Kongsberg Discovery tailored to locate, inspect, and engage fish with unparalleled efficiency.The 100-meter-long Arctic Fjord, designed by Kongsberg Maritime and built by Louisiana’s Thoma-Sea Marine Constructor, will start full-time operations for 2024’s pollock A season in the Bering Sea.Speaking ahead of this week’s Pacific Marine Expo in Seattle…

Two new routes have been designated under the U.S. Marine Highway Program (MHP), U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced this week during a visit to Alaska.The newly designated M-11 in Alaska will add over 6,500 miles to the marine highway system, and the M-79 route extends the reach of the Ohio River system by nearly 250 miles in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. These designations allow any eligible applicant on these routes to apply for future U.S. Marine Highway Program grants…

The United States in recent weeks has been tracking what is believed to be a Russian military spy ship off the coast of the Hawaiian Islands.The U.S. Coast Guard said in an update on Thursday that it has been keeping tabs on the vessel, a suspected "intelligence gathering ship", for several weeks. Video footage released by the agency showed the ship in waters off the Hawaiian coast on January 11.The ship has been identified as the Kareliya (SSV-535), a Vishnya-class intelligence ship used by the Russian Navy for signals intelligence gathering.

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Alex Haley returned to homeport at Coast Guard Base Kodiak, Alaska, on Thursday, following an extended seven-month dry dock maintenance period in Seattle.While in dry dock, the crew and contractors successfully completed more than $6 million worth of repairs.The engineering department oversaw 76 work items including major overhauls on the cutter’s controllable pitch propeller system, speed reducers, rudders, and boilers, along with inspections of fuel, sewage, and water tanks.

New Year’s Eve is a time of celebration and remembrance. Three years ago, on December 31, 2019, as the new year was being rung in across the lower 48 states, a tragedy was playing out in icy Alaskan waters. The fishing vessel Scandies Rose, with seven crew members aboard, encountered severe icing conditions and high winds and waves as it transited from Kodiak to fishing grounds in the Bering Sea. The crabber tried to make it to Sutwik Island to shelter from the storm; however…

Capt. Tony Russell (CG Ret.) has been named as the Executive Director for the Center for Arctic Study and Policy (CASP) at the Coast Guard Academy.CASP serves as a Coast Guard-focused academic think tank to promote research, broaden partnerships, and educate future leaders about the complexities of the Arctic region. Through interdisciplinary efforts across the Academy, and in collaboration with U.S. Coast Guard sponsors and external partners, the Center promotes effective solutions…

The Coast Guard’s 353-ton, 154-foot fast response cutter (WPC) is capable of deploying independently to conduct missions that include port, waterways and coastal security; fishery patrols; search and rescue; and national defense. The service plans to build 64 of them to replace the 110-foot Island class patrol boats. The FRC has a range of 2,500 miles, but the endurance of the 24 crewmembers is normally limited to about five days based on the quantity of provisions carried. Both the 110s and 154s have about the same speed and range…

Sea ice predictions have improved markedly since the founding of an international forecasting and monitoring network 14 years ago.“These forecasts are quite encouraging in their increasing accuracy,” said Uma Bhatt, an atmospheric sciences professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. Bhatt spoke about the Sea Ice Prediction Network at the American Geophysical Union’s annual meeting last month.As the amount of sea ice in the Arctic declines, thins and becomes more mobile…

Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) is supporting O'Hara Corporation as they modernize their 204' factory trawler, Alaska Spirit. The vessel has been successfully fishing Alaska's Bering Sea since 1989 when it was converted from an offshore supply vessel to a head and gut factory trawler. O'Hara has committed to a complete vessel overhaul to improve habitability, efficiency and optimize vessel performance.The multi-year project kicked off in 2017, shortly after O'Hara acquired the vessel and selected EBDG as their designated engineering partner.

Designer and builders of specialized vessels Vard said it has signed an agreement for the design and construction of another stern trawler for Russian fishing company Luntos Co. Ltd., due for delivery in the third quarter of 2022.The order, which follows the first placed in 2019, is for a new fishing vessel with a length of 87 meters and a beam of 18 meters, will be built at Vard Vung Tau shipyard (Vietnam).The newbuild is designed to ensure optimal productivity, sustainability and operational efficiency…

The Bering Sea ice cover during the winters of 2018 and 2019 hit new lows not seen in thousands of years, scientists reported on Wednesday, adding to concerns about the accelerating impact of climate change in the Arctic.Satellite data provides a clear picture of how sea ice has changed over the last four decades in the region between the Arctic and northern Pacific oceans. Beyond that, the only ice records available were those recorded in ship logs and other observations.So scientists turned to peat land, which holds organic compounds from plants dating back millennia, on the remote St.

One the U.S. Coast Guard's last remaining 378-foot high endurance cutters recently wrapped up its final patrol before its scheduled decomissioning in August.A 150-person crew on Coast Guard Cutter Mellon (WHEC 717) left Seattle April 17 to conduct missions throughout the Aleutian Islands and Bering Sea and returned to homeport July 7.During the patrol the crew conducted 38 law enforcement boardings, four search and rescue cases and enforced federal regulations governing Alaska’s…

A crew member badly burned on board a fishing vessel in the Bering Sea was medevaced for transport to onshore medical personnel in Alaska, on Monday.At 9:56 a.m., U.S. Coast Guard watchstanders in the 17th District command center received a medevac request from US-flagged fishing vessel Bountiful for a crewmember with severe burns. After conducting a brief with the Coast Guard duty flight surgeon, watchstanders directed the launch of an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew.The helicopter crew from Air Station Kodiak arrived on scene approximately 46 miles southwest of Saint Paul…

Five commercial fishermen were believed to have died after their crabbing vessel sank on New Year’s Eve in the Gulf of Alaska, the U.S. Coast Guard said after ending a search and rescue operation amid high winds and heavy seas.There were two survivors: crewmen who took refuge in a lifeboat and were rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter. The two were taken to a hospital in Kodiak and were reported to be in stable condition, the Coast Guard said.But after scouring a 1,400 square-mile (3,600 square km) area for 20 hours with helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft in the air and a cutter at sea, the Coast Guard called off its search for five missing crew on Wednesday night.The wreck appeared to be the worst Alaska commercial fishing accident in nearly three years.

VARD, one of the major global designers and shipbuilders of specialized vessels, has announced that it has signed an agreement to provide a state-of-the-art stern trawler to Russian deepwater fishing company Luntos Co. Ltd. The vessel, a VARD 8 02 design, will feature a range of innovations to ensure optimal productivity, sustainability and operational efficiency, delivering high performance in the most demanding environmental conditions.The new vessel, with a length of 80.4 meters and a beam of 16.7 meters, has been specially tailored for Luntos, based on the proven VARD 8 02 design.

On the night of March 23, 2008, most of the crew sleeps while fishing vessel Alaska Ranger makes her way to the rich fishing grounds off the coast of Alaska. As the Engineer makes his nightly rounds, he discovers a serious flood in the rudder room. He raises the alarm and the captain issues a Mayday call. But before the crew can investigate the source of the leak, the rising water reaches their electrical systems and the ship loses power. With the ship listing and in danger of sinking, the captain orders the crew to abandon ship.

Network Innovations and its inland waterways connectivity solution eliminates “dead spot” coverage woes. And, not a moment too soon.The bane of inland operators – or at least one of many – has always been the dearth of reliable and economical vessel-to-shore communications. Even in America’s heartland where cellular coverage is routinely billed as seamless, so-called ‘dead spots’ persist. Sometimes, this happens at the worst possible moment for an operator who has myriad far flung assets on dozens of remote inland waterways. For a long time, satellite service has not been deemed economically feasible for inland operators. Beyond that, unlike blue water deep sea operators, there was little need to download data or employ software solutions in every day operations.

Arctic region experienced the second-warmest air temperatures ever recorded; the second-lowest overall sea-ice coverage; lowest recorded winter ice in the Bering Sea; and earlier plankton blooms due to early melting of sea ice in the Bering Sea - these are the findings of NOAA’s annual report card on the Arctic.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report, which measures the changing climate of the polar region including warmer air and ocean temperatures and declines in sea-ice that are driving shifts in animal habitats, said that in addition to annual updates on ocean temperature, snow cover, tundra greenness and melting on the Greenland Ice Sheet…

Epoxyamine Coating Extends Tank Maintenance Intervals: A Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings Case Study.A commercial fishing vessel that shows up at a seafood processing facility with its catch housed in rusty fish hold tanks is flirting with potential disaster. The processor may refuse the vessel’s entire haul if it sees rusty water or floating paint chips inside the holds. And when your vessel can hold more than $3 million of value at dock prices, you certainly don’t want to run the risk of corrosion eating away at your profits.“If we don’t have good fish holds…

Captain Sig Hansen has been fishing crabs in Alaska aboard the F/V Northwestern for more than 30 years. In 2005, Discovery Channel aired the documentary TV show “Deadliest Catch”, which portrays real life aboard fishing vessels in the Bering Sea. Since then, he has been one of the most charismatic characters of the globally watched TV show.In April 2018, PALFINGER MARINE received a purchase order from Captain Hansen for a knuckle boom crane (PKM 250) to be used for lifting operations…

The International Maritime Organization approved the Bering Strait and Bering Sea ship routing measures proposed by the United States and Russian Federation. Taking effect Dec. 1, 2018, the six two-way routes and six precautionary areas are the first internationally recognized ship routing measures the IMO has approved for polar waters. In November 2017, the U.S. and Russia proposed a system of two-way routes for vessels to follow in the Bering Strait and Bering Sea in response to increased shipping traffic there. “We have observed a steady increase in Arctic shipping activities over the last decade, and these routing measures were jointly developed in response to this increased activity,” said Mike Sollosi, the chief of the U.S. Coast Guard Navigation Standards Division. Located in U.S.