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Blount Island News

15 Aug 2022

JAXPORT Promotes Infrastructure Development Leader Bennett to COO

James Bennett (Photo: JAXPORT)

JAXPORT has promoted infrastructure development leader James Bennett, P.E., to the role of chief operating officer (COO). Bennett is a licensed professional engineer with more than three decades of transportation industry experience.Bennett joined JAXPORT in 2017 as senior director of engineering and construction, responsible for the port’s marine and landside infrastructure development and engineering and construction operations. In this role, he managed the completion of JAXPORT’s major growth projects…

26 May 2022

Dredging at JAXPORT’s Blount Island Marine Terminal Complete

Front row from left: Congresswoman Kat Cammack, Congressman John Rutherford, JAXPORT CEO Eric Green, FDOT Secretary Jared W. Perdue, JAXPORT Chair Wendy Hamilton, JAXPORT’s City Council Liaison Ron Salem, and Jacksonville City Council President Sam Newby cut a ribbon following the last scoop of the Jacksonville Harbor Deepening Project through Blount Island. (Photo: JAXPORT)

The project to deepen 11 miles of the federal shipping channel from the sea buoy to JAXPORT’s Blount Island Marine Terminal to a depth of 47 feet from its previous depth of 40 feet has been completed. Federal, state, and local leaders joined JAXPORT and the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Jacksonville District to celebrate the project's completion.The 47-foot harbor provides the channel depth needed for larger ships to call Blount Island to and from destinations worldwide and allows existing ships calling Jacksonville to carry more cargo on board.

21 Mar 2022

Great Lakes Reports $132.3 Million in Dredging Contracts

(Photo: Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation)

Houston-based dredging services provider Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation announced it has received several major dredging awards totaling $132.3 million.The awarded work includes:Coastal Storm Risk Management Rockaway Inlet Beach Fill Subcontract (Coastal Protection, New York, $37.2 million)South Atlantic Division Regional Harbor Dredging Project (Maintenance, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, $25.8 million)Avon Village Beach Nourishment and Buxton Renourishment Project (Coastal Protection…

25 Sep 2020

Great Lakes Wins Jacksonville Harbor Dredging Contract

(Photo: Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation)

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation has been awarded a $105 million Base and Option B contract award on the Jacksonville Harbor Construction Dredging, 47-Foot Contract C Cut-42 Project, the U.S.' largest dredging services provider announced Friday.Great Lakes said it expects the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to award additional option work items on the contract by mid-2021 with a value of $11.5 million, resulting in a total contract award of $116.5 million.Dredging is scheduled…

03 Jul 2020

Höegh Xiamen Declared 'Total Loss' After Jacksonville Fire

A fire broke out on board the 600-foot vehicle carrier Hoegh Xiamen, at Blount Island in Jacksonville, Fla. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Jessica Maldonado Gonzalez)

Höegh Xiamen car carrier has been declared "a constructive total loss" following a fire that broke out on the vessel in early June in Jacksonville, USA.The Höegh Xiamen car carrier is owned by Ocean Yield and is on a bareboat contract to Höegh Autoliners. The fire broke out on June 4, shortly after the vessel had completed loading operations at Blount Island, Jacksonville, Florida. It was extinguished late on June 12.During the initial response, several firefighters sustained serious injuries.Ocean Yield which on Friday said the vessel had been declared a total loss…

08 Jun 2020

Höegh Xiamen Fire Contained

(Photo: JFRD)

A three-alarm fire that broke out aboard vehicle carrier Höegh Xiamen in the Port of Jacksonville last week continues to burn but has been controlled and contained, authorities said Monday.Firefighters with Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department (JFRD) and specialist marine firefighters with Resolve Marine Group are working to maintain the structural integrity of the 600-foot roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) ship and reduce the threat of any environmental impact to the river. Containment booms have been placed around the vessel as a precautionary measure, though no pollution has been reported.

05 Jun 2020

Explosion Injures Firefighters Battling RoRo Blaze in Jacksonville

A fire broke out on board the 600-foot vehicle carrier Hoegh Xiamen, at Blount Island in Jacksonville, Fla. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Jessica Maldonado Gonzalez)

An explosion injured several firefighters battling a blaze on board car carrier Höegh Xiamen at berth in Jacksonville, Fla. Thursday.The eight responders have been transported to the hospital for serious injuries, including two taken by air and two by ground to to Shands Gainesville burn unit. They are all in stable condition.All of the ship's 21 crew members are off the ship, uninjured and accounted for, the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department (JFRD) said.The U.S. Coast Guard said its watchstanders at Sector Jacksonville were notified at 3:53 p.m.

24 Nov 2019

JaxPort Break Ground on Container Terminal

U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administrator Rear Adm. Mark Buzby joined elected officials and leadership from Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) and SSA Marine on Nov. 22 to break ground on a new state-of-the-art international container terminal at JAXPORT’s Blount Island Marine Terminal.The SSA Jacksonville Container Terminal is an expansion of SSA’s current leasehold at Blount Island and includes $238.7 million in infrastructure and equipment upgrades. Operations will continue throughout the redevelopment, which is expected to be complete in 2023—coinciding with the completion of the federal project to deepen the Jacksonville shipping channel to 47 feet.

22 Nov 2019

$20m Infrastructure Investment in Jacksonville

Photo: U.S. Department of Transportation
Maritime Administration

U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration Administrator, Admiral Mark Buzby formally presented a check for $20 million to Jacksonville for the International Cargo Terminal Modernization Project. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao has announced that the Trump Administration will invest $900 million in American infrastructure through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) Transportation Discretionary Grants program. “The Administration is targeting BUILD Transportation grants to repair…

25 Oct 2019

JAXPORT Sets Cargo Records

Photo: JAXPORT

Florida’s largest container port achieved record volumes in containers, vehicles and overall tonnage during the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019.The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) moved more than 1.338 million twenty-foot equivalent units (or TEUs, the industry standard for measuring containers), a 5 percent increase over 2018, which was also a record year in container volumes for the port. JAXPORT has set container volume records for four consecutive years.The port also moved the most vehicles in its history…

23 Aug 2019

JAXPORT Acheives Record July

Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) announced that it has achieved its best ever July container volumes, with overall container movements increasing 19% compared to the previous July.More than 116,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (or TEUs, the industry standard for measuring containers) moved through JAXPORT in July 2019, said Florida’s largest container port by volume.So far in Fiscal Year 2019, more than 1.1 million containers have moved through JAXPORT, an increase of 9 percent over the same period last year. The port’s fiscal year runs Oct. 1- Sept. 30.JAXPORT is on pace to set a container volume record for the fourth consecutive year. Asian container volumes continue to grow, up 9 percent year–to–date with more than 374,200 Asian TEUs moved so far in FY19.

09 Aug 2019

JAXPORT Welcomes FDOT Secretary

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT), Florida,  said that its Chief Executive Officer Eric Green and other port executives welcomed Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Kevin Thibault for an update on port growth and a waterside tour of ongoing port projects.JAXPORT said that the visit included a look at how the projects—from berth enhancements to Mile Point and harbor deepening—work together to make Jacksonville’s seaport more competitive, bringing jobs and revenue to Northeast Florida.The tour began with a stop at Berths 33 and 34, currently under construction at the SSA Jacksonville Container Terminal at Blount Island.

21 Jul 2019

JaxPort Reaches Record Numbers

Florida's Jacksonville Port Authority (JaxPort) has achieved a record number of container and auto moves during the first three quarters of fiscal year 2019.According to a press note, JaxPort moved nearly one million containers, a six percent increase over the same period last year during this time.. The port also moved nearly 535,000 auto units in this period, an increase of seven percent over the same time in FY18. JaxPort’s fiscal year runs Oct. 1 – Sept. 30.JaxPort’s Asian container volumes continue to grow, up eight percent so far in FY19, with more than 334,000 Asian containers moved. JaxPort offers service to Asia through both the Panama and Suez canals…

29 Apr 2019

Record-Breaking Cargo Ship Visits JAXPORT

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT), an international trade seaport on the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida, set a new port record today with the arrival of the ZIM vessel Kota Pekarang, the largest container ship to ever call Jacksonville.The 11,923-TEU (container) vessel is operated by ZIM on a service offered by the 2M Alliance, comprised of Maersk, MSC, Hamburg Süd and strategic partners HMM and ZIM.The Kota Pekarang, which transited the Panama Canal from Northeast Asia before reaching the U.S. East Coast, discharged and loaded cargo at JAXPORT’s Blount Island Marine Terminal.This port call comes a little more than one month after the previous largest ship to ever call JAXPORT – the 11,000 TEU ZIM vessel Cape Sounio – docked at Blount Island on March 18.

20 Mar 2019

JAXPORT Receives Largest Ever Box Ship

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) and terminal operator SSA Atlantic on Monday afternoon welcomed the largest container ship to ever visit Jacksonville.JAXPORT set a new port record today with the arrival of the ZIM vessel Cape Sounio, the largest container ship to ever call Jacksonville, claimed a press release.The 11,000-TEU (container) vessel is operated by ZIM on a service offered by the 2M alliance. The 2M alliance is comprised of Maersk, MSC, Hamburg Süd and strategic partners HMM and ZIM.The vessel, which transited the Panama Canal from Asia before reaching the U.S. East Coast, loaded and offloaded cargo at JAXPORT’s Blount…

22 Feb 2019

Jaxport Hits Record Container Volumes in January

Jaxport, the port of Jacksonville, Florida, had its best ever January container volumes, with total container movements increasing 16 percent over the same period last year.Nearly 121,400 twenty-foot equivalent units (or TEUs, the industry standard for measuring containers) moved through JAXPORT in January 2019.The port’s Asian container volumes continue to show significant growth, up 17 percent year–to–date with nearly 164,000 TEUs moved so far in Fiscal Year 2019. JAXPORT’s fiscal year runs Oct. 1- Sept. 30. JAXPORT’s Asian trade has grown an average of 14 percent annually over the past five years.January was also a record month for the port’s auto business. Nearly 61,500 autos moved through JAXPORT in January 2019, a double-digit increase over the previous January.

24 Apr 2018

Three rescued near Blount Island

The U.S. Coast Guard and good Samaritans came to the rescue of three people Monday after their vessel capsized near Blount Island.  Coast Guard watchstanders in Jacksonville were notified via VHF-FM marine band radio channel 16 at 6:03 p.m. by a good Samaritan aboard the motor vessel Grand Mercury reporting three people in the water and a capsized 15-foot boat. A Coast Guard Station Mayport 29-foot Response Boat – Small boatcrew launched, arrived on scene at 6:25 p.m. and rescued one person from the water while the crew of the tugboat Sewells Point rescued two others. The Coast Guard boat crew transferred the three people to EMS at Blount Island and no injuries were reported. The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department towed the capsized vessel to the Arlington Road Public Boat Ramp.

20 Jul 2015

Maersk Starts Weekly Service through Port of Jacksonville

The Port of Jacksonville (JAXPORT) has welcomed the 4,400 teu AS Mariana, the first ship in Maersk Line’s new weekly service to Asia through at the port’s Blount Island Marine Terminal. JAXPORT has officially announced the addition of the world’s No. 1 container shipping company to the growing number of global carriers with regular container cargo service through Jacksonville. This addition service means that nine of the world’s top 10 global container carriers now offer their customers the opportunity to move containers into and out of Northeast Florida. “What better way to illustrate JAXPORT’s increasingly visible role in international trade than to welcome the world’s largest container line,” said JAXPORT Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer Roy Schleicher.

21 Oct 2013

Nett Technologies Complete JAXPORT Emissions Project

JAXPORT forklift, crane at work: Photo courtesy of JAXPORT

The EPA-funded JAXPORT diesel emissions reduction project completed by Nett Technologies involved the design, manufacture and installation of 19 Diesel Oxidation Catalysts (DOC) onto several large container cranes, generator, forklift and trucks owned and operated by the Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT). JAXPORT is located in Jacksonville, Florida and is an independent seaport authority created by the Florida State Legislature to operate as a landlord, managing its equipment, upkeep, and the continued expansion and improvement of its port facilities.

27 Jun 2013

Sea Star Receives New Refrigerated Containers

Photo: Sea Star Line

Sea Star Line, LLC recently took delivery of 150 new 40’ refrigerated containers in year two of a five year equipment replacement plan. The replacement plan aims to reduce the average age of the entire Sea Star Line refrigerated container fleet to less than three years. The new 40’ refrigerated containers are set to arrive at the Blount Island Terminal in Jacksonville, Florida in June 2013. The reefers will be fit with Carrier PrimeLine Machinery, the latest technology available for refrigerated equipment.

20 Jan 2010

Navy Prepositioning Ship Bound for Haiti

U.S. Navy Maritime Prepositioning Ship USNS 1ST LT Jack Lummus is loading cargo at Blount Island Command, Jacksonville, Fla., Jan. 18-19 in support of international disaster relief efforts underway in Haiti following the Jan. 12 earthquake. Lummus is loading supplies and equipment from both the U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.S. Marine Corps, as well as cargo from other U.S. government agencies. USAID is providing more than 120 pallets of relief supplies, and more than 400 16-ounce bottles of propane for the shipment. The Marine Corps is providing cargo to support the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit as it gives humanitarian assistance to the people of Haiti. The cargo includes dump trucks, bulldozers and other heavy equipment.

12 Aug 2003

Marinette Marine Wins $40M Contract

Training Group Pacific; and Blount Island Command, Jacksonville, Fla. be used to offload vehicles and cargo containers from ships at anchor. cumulative value of this contract to $404,815,320. Marinette, Wis., and is expected to be completed by January 2005. will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. received. is the contracting activity (N00025-03-C-0002).

03 Oct 2003

Navy Names Newest USNS Ship for Medal of Honor Recipient

The U.S. Lance Cpl. Roy M. Wheat, Tuesday, Oct. Blount Island Command, Jacksonville, Fla. Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Atlantic, Lt. Gen. Martin R. Berndt, is the ceremony's principal speaker. Margaret Taylor, wife of Rep. across the bow to officially name the ship. The ship is named in honor of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Roy M. (1947-1967), a native of Moselle, Miss. On Aug. sacrificed his life to save the lives of two other Marines. with his own body. and possible death. with Palm, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. mariners as a part of the Maritime Prepostioning Force (MPF) program. roll-on/roll-off and container cargo. airfield, a naval construction battalion, and a fleet hospital. tons fully loaded, and can sustain speeds of more than 20 knots.