Elizabeth River News

More than 100 passengers, the vast majority of them school children, were rescued from a passenger vessel that caught fire on Tuesday in Norfolk, Va.The fire aboard the Spirit of Norfolk was reported around noon, while the vessel was on a cruise in the Elizabeth River, near Naval Station Norfolk. Images and videos shared on social media show flames and heavy smoke rising from the 169-foot-long vessel. The cause of the fire is under investigation, though officials believe it started in the vessel's engine room.

The Coast Guard suspended its search for a 63-year-old missing mariner on the Elizabeth River in Norfolk, Virginia, Sunday night.The missing 63-year-old man, Paul Youngk, was reportedly aboard his vessel when it began taking on water and eventually capsized early Sunday morning.An MH-60 Jayhawk aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and the crews of Coast Guard Cutter Hawk and Station Portsmouth searched a total of 152 square miles in 11.6 hours.Also assisting in the search was the Virginia Marine Resources Commission…

Virginia’s Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) has christened its newest passenger ferry, the first of three to be delivered to the agency as part of a $7 million program to replace the fleet’s aging vessels, the newest of which was delivered in 1990 and the oldest of which has been in service since 1982. Designed by BMT and constructed by Armstrong Marine in North Carolina, the new vessel is a 149-passenger, 78-foot, aluminum ferry powered by twin Volvo D13-400 Tier III-compliant engines, spinning 36-inch propellers via Twin Disc reduction gears.

The U.S. Coast Guard said it is monitoring a 586-foot Thai-flagged cargo vessel that ran aground off Sewells Point in Norfolk, Via., Thursday. Watchstanders at the Sector Hampton Roads Command Center in Portsmouth received a call at 12:50 p.m. that the bulk cargo ship Mallika Naree lost propulsion in the Elizabeth River, struck buoy #5 and ran soft aground outside the channel. The Mallika Naree is carrying cement and steel. 45-foot Response Boat-Medium and 29-foot Response Boat-Small crews from Coast Guard Station Portsmouth and a boat crew from Aids to Navigation Team Hampton Roads launched at about 1 p.m. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C., was diverted at 1:20 p.m. to conduct an overflight assessment of the surrounding area.

Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) has specified twin Volvo Penta 13-liter 400 hp diesel engines to power its two new Elizabeth River ferries – River Ferry IV and V – due to enter service later this year. The ferries provide daily, round-trip connections between the downtowns of Norfolk and Portsmouth in southeastern Virginia. The two aluminum 150-passenger pedestrian ferries were designed by BMT Group and are under construction at Armstrong Marine’s shipyard in Swansboro, N.C. One is expected to be delivered before the end of 2016 and the second is slated for delivery during the first half of 2017.

A little-known annual American commemoration is coming up again on May 22 - National Maritime Day. It was declared by Congress in 1933 to call attention to America’s proud maritime heritage and to honor the men and women who serve and have served as U.S. merchant mariners. It’s also a day to recognize and reflect on the rewards that America’s ports bring the country in terms of jobs, economic development, goods movement and international competitiveness. For the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA)—the unified and recognized voice of seaports in the Americas—National Maritime Day offers the nation’s ports a great opportunity to showcase the value of their facilities, operations and personnel to their respective communities.

Host of U.S. A little-known annual American commemoration is coming up again on May 22: National Maritime Day, declared by Congress in 1933 to call attention to America’s maritime heritage and to honor the men and women who serve and have served as U.S. merchant mariners. It’s also a day to recognize and reflect on the rewards that America’s ports bring the country in terms of jobs, economic development, goods movement and international competitiveness. For the American Association…

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has delivered the three hybrid shuttle carriers ordered by The Port of Virginia in late 2014, to Virginia International Gateway terminal (VIG) in Portsmouth, Virginia, USA. The environmentally advanced units have been in action in VIG since last week. Cargo volumes at VIG are growing and the terminal's operations team seeks to increase container handling capacity while furthering its commitment to environmental values. The hybrid technology developed by Kalmar for cargo handling equipment significantly reduces diesel fuel consumption and emissions, as well as engine noise levels. Furthermore, Kalmar hybrid shuttle carriers feature industry leading stability…

U.S. Coast Guard crews escorted the USS. Harry S. Truman Monday through the southern branch of the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth, Va. The Coast Guard Cutter Sea Horse, home ported in Portsmouth, and response boat crews from Station Portsmouth provided the escort of the carrier during the transit.

U.S. Coast Guard, state and local first responders are responding Wednesday to an overloaded tank containing sodium hydroxide in Norfolk along the Elizabeth River. Norfolk Fire Department contacted Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads command center personnel at approximately 7:30 a.m., reporting a chemical tank was overloaded at a Kinder-Morgan terminal on the eastern branch of the Elizabeth River. Coast Guard pollution responders have been dispatched to the scene to work with local agencies to assess the situation…

The US Coast Guard says it continues to monitor clean-up efforts in the Elizabeth River at Lambert's Point in Norfolk. The National Response Center contacted Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads Command Center watchstanders at approximately 3:20 p.m. Friday reporting a fuel spill aboard the Ostria S, a 740-foot bulk carrier. Sector watchstanders dispatched a Coast Guard pollution response crew to the scene to oversee the cleanup efforts. Accurate Marine Environmental Incorporated personnel placed 3,000 feet of containment boom around the vessel and pier to contain the fuel. Personnel from Marine Spill Response Corporation, the oil spill response organization, arrived on scene Friday and began cleanup operations. Cleanup efforts are expected to continue through Sunday.

Crews aboard two 25-foot Response Boat – Smalls, from Coast Guard Station Curtis Bay, Maryland, are to be seen here escorting the tugboats 'Honor' and 'Captain William Landry' near Sparrows Point, as they tow a section of the Midtown Tunnel that will connect Portsmouth with Norfolk, Virginia. The Coast Guard explains that the tunnel section is being towed down the Chesapeake Bay to the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, where it will await placement in the Elizabeth River this fall.

The Coast Guard rescued a 58-year-old woman Monday from the Elizabeth River near the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. Virginia State Police dispatchers contacted Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads Command Center watchstanders at 11:20 p.m. Sunday, reporting a woman in the water. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina was diverted and a 25-foot Response Boat - Small crew from Coast Guard Station Portsmouth launched to assist. The helicopter crew spotted the woman at approximately 12:05 a.m., Monday, and guided the small boat to her location. At 12:10 a.m. the woman was pulled from the water…

The U.S. Coast Guard said it is investigating a 590-foot, 35,000 dwt freighter that ran aground Wednesday night in the Elizabeth River near Hospital Point in Portsmouth. A pilot aboard the 2013-built Hanze Goteborg, a Netherlands-flagged freighter carrying soy beans, contacted Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads Command Center watchstanders at approximately 10:30 p.m. reporting the ship soft aground with no reported injuries, pollution or damage. Sector watchstanders dispatched a crew aboard a 45-foot Response Boat - Medium, who arrived on scene at approximately 11:45 p.m. to assess damage and continue to monitor the situation. Though the waterway was partially obstructed, it remained open to vessel traffic with restrictions.

The Coast Guard medevaced two crewmembers from the Elizabeth Anne, a 99-foot tug, Thursday, in the Elizabeth River approximately three miles southwest of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. A crewmember aboard the Elizabeth Anne contacted Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads watchstanders via VHF-FM channel 16 at approximately 7:45 a.m., reporting a parted chain injured two crewmembers. Sector Hampton Roads watchstanders dispatched a crew aboard a 25-foot Response Boat - Small from Coast Guard Station Portsmouth to assist. The RB-S crew arrived on scene at approximately 8 a.m. and removed the two crewmembers. "The crew worked seamlessly together to stabilize the victim," said Petty Officer 3rd Class Linden Hannon, a crewmember aboard the RB-S from Station Portsmouth.

The Coast Guard is responding Monday to a report of two grain barges that broke away from their pier and struck the Jordan Bridge on the Elizabeth River in Chesapeake. Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads received a report at approximately 12:30 a.m. from the Chesapeake Police Department, stating two 260-foot barges struck the bridge. Watchstanders deployed a crew from Coast Guard Station Portsmouth aboard a 25-foot Response Boat-Small to investigate. Chesapeake police units also responded. At approximately 2:30 a.m., crews aboard the tugboats Sea Coast and Eleen MaCalister removed the barges and took them to the Perdue Farms Grain Wharf. There was no visible damage to the bridge, and river and road traffic remains open.

Steven E. Avery, 56, of Bohannon, VA, Billy J. Avery, 81, of Virginia Beach, VA, and the corporation Sea Solutions, Inc., all pleaded guilty yesterday in Norfolk federal court to various environmental crimes stemming from their activities in the ship scrapping business. Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, made the announcement that the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen. The three will all be sentenced on July 12, 2012.

The Navy announced on September 8 its decision to deepen approximately five miles of the Norfolk Harbor Channel in the Elizabeth River. This action will allow the continuous safe and expeditious travel of aircraft carriers to and from the Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) and the Lamberts Point Deperming Station. Dredging this heavily-used waterway, which is the federal navigation channel within the Elizabeth River in Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Chesapeake, would occur from the Lamberts Point Deperming Station in the Lamberts Bend Reach, south to NNSY in the Lower Reach. Dredging would occur completely within the existing Army Corps of Engineers-maintained federal navigation channel.

Coast Guard crews demonstrate the capabilities of the 45-foot Response Boat - Medium from Station Little Creek and the 24-foot Special Purpose Craft - Shallow Water from Station Chincoteague in the Elizabeth River near Portsmouth, Va., Friday, Nov. 21, 2008. The boats will provide Coast Guard crews with enhanced capabilities to fulfill their Homeland Security missions. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo/Petty Officer Mark Jones)

The NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office will deploy a “smart buoy” at the mouth of the to take observations of the Bay's changing conditions. A part of the Chesapeake Bay Interpretive Buoy System (CBIBS), this is the fourth interpretative buoy to mark the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. The buoy will be deployed off Stingray Point, near , to mark the 400th anniversary of Captain John Smith's exploration of the region. In July 1608, while using a sword to fish in shallow waters near the mouth of the , Smith was stung by a stingray and nearly died. The buoy collects weather, oceanographic and water-quality observations and transmits this data wirelessly in near-real time.

APM Terminals North America Inc. announced plans to build a container terminal located on the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth, Virginia. Dredging is expected to start later this year, and construction of the terminal is expected to be completed in 2007. The facility will feature 4000 ft. (1219 meters) of deepwater berth space (four times the current amount), and serve as a Mid-Atlantic platform for future growth. Many high profile international companies have significant operations in the region and others are actively eyeing major distribution centers for the future. The amount of cargo through Hampton Roads is expected to at least double by 2020, in part due to the area’s attraction as a major distribution center.

APM Terminals North America Inc. announced plans to build a container terminal located on the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth, Va. Dredging is expected to start later this year, and construction of the terminal is expected to be completed in 2007. The facility will feature 4,000 ft. of deepwater berth space (four times the current amount), and serve as a Mid-Atlantic platform for future growth. Many high profile international companies have significant operations in the region and others are actively eyeing major distribution centers for the future. The amount of cargo through Hampton Roads is expected to at least double by 2020, in part due to the area's attraction as a major distribution center.

As part of the Coast Guard’s ongoing port security mission, extra Coast Guard boats and people will be providing armed escort and enforcing the Naval Vessel Protection Zone (NVPZ) surrounding the USS Roosevelt Battle Group during its return to Hampton Roads Wednesday morning. “We’re very proud of what our Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen and Marines are doing overseas to protect our homeland,” Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Brendan McPherson said. More than 150 Coast Guard men and women from Coast Guard Group Hampton Roads, the Marine Safety Office and a number of local boats and cutters, including the 210-foot cutter Diligence from Wilmington, N.C., will be conducting a channel clearing operation from 6:15 to 8:35 Wednesday morning.